


Matchflame

by ParadiseAvenger



Category: Haven (TV)
Genre: Angst, Buffy the Vampire Slayer References, F/M, Happy Ending, Human Experimentation, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Rescue, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-21
Updated: 2019-10-19
Packaged: 2020-10-25 13:27:24
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 25,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20724947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ParadiseAvenger/pseuds/ParadiseAvenger
Summary: Nathan glared up into the commando’s face, teeth bared.“You can’t feel any of it, can you? You’re a Hostile, just like her.”“What about this one?” an Initiative soldier asked. The nose of his rifle dug hard into Duke’s ribs.“He’s a witness,” the leader said. “He knows about the Hostiles. Eliminate him.”





	1. Taken

Look for updates to this every Saturday.

“The thing about a hero is even when it doesn't look like there's a light at the end of the tunnel, he's going to keep digging. He's going to keep trying to do right and make up for what's gone before, just because that's who he is.” – Joss Whedon

XXX

The three of them crashed through the trees. Duke Crocker had the middle position. Branches whipped his into face, caught his hair and clothes, and generally slowed his progress. Special Agent Audrey Parker was somewhere to his left. He could hear her shouting, screaming more like, calling for the Troubled girl to come back to them. It wasn’t safe out here, Audrey insisted, for any of them. Detective Nathan Wuornos ran to Duke’s right, scouring the overgrowth for signs of the girl. He barged ahead, unable to feel the brambles snapping, stinging, and slicing his skin. Duke hurried through the pain, pushing aside branches, tearing his palms. He called the girl’s name while Audrey screamed it.

They didn’t need speed—not so much as they really needed a miracle to find the Troubled girl before the Initiative did. For that, they needed more than three people crashing through the underbrush. They really needed a search party. They needed to comb every inch of this forest. They needed help. They needed to find her before it was too late. A branch slashed Duke’s cheek, thorns digging deep. He swore, batted it away, and doubled down. Nathan had pulled ahead of him, the noise growing fainter as Nathan surely ripped himself to unfeeling shreds.

To his left, Duke heard Audrey slow and then stop completely. Silence fell in the space where she should have been and Duke’s heart skipped a beat. Then, just when he was about to forget all about the girl and head towards Audrey, he heard her voice. She was too far away for him to make out what she was saying clearly. However, her voice was hard and cold with authority. Someone responded, male and loud. Duke’s heart gave a sickening drop in his chest.

The Initiative had caught up to them.

Audrey was FBI, she was immune, she was in no danger from those bastards, but…

The sound of Nathan forcing his way ahead, calling occasionally for the girl in a voice that pitched with panic, grew further away. Duke made an effort to be more careful, to make as little noise as possible with the hopes that those bastards would stay talking to Audrey and overlook them. He pushed aside a bramble bush, following Nathan more so than looking for the girl now. If the Initiative caught her, Audrey and Nathan would do everything they could to rescue her. If those bastards caught Nathan, Duke, and the girl, Audrey would have to look for all of them. Duke didn’t want that any more than he wanted to be captured himself.

“Nathan!” he called hoarsely.

Nathan didn’t pause.

Duke freed himself from the brush and raced to catch up with Nathan in the clearing. He saw Nathan stumble, his ankle twisting hard in a gopher hole, but Nathan didn’t feel it. He just kept going, scanning the soft clear ground for signs of the girl’s footprints. Duke fell in beside him, near-sprinting to keep pace with Nathan’s strides.

Nathan was breathing hard, but probably didn’t feel the burn in his lungs and muscles. He glanced at Duke, then asked, “Where’s Audrey?”

“She stopped,” Duke panted. “I heard her talking. They caught up. We have to get out of here.”

“I’m not leaving without Emma,” Nathan bit out.

“If they catch all three of us,” Duke continued, “then Audrey will be alone against them.”

Nathan looked torn. He slowed his relentless pace, glancing at the overgrown forest surrounding them on all sides. There was no sign of Emma. She had managed to give Audrey and Nathan the slip for this long, who was to say she couldn’t avoid these Initiative bastards too? She would probably be fine, bolted down, curled up like a vixen in some hidey-hole in these endless woods.

Duke slowed too, gasping for breath. The moment he stopped, the ache in his side flared, exploding into a stitch that worked its way up under his ribs and into his lungs. “Let’s circle around,” he panted. “We’ll meet Audrey at the Bronco.”

Nathan started to nod, his chest heaving.

Then, a piercing little girl’s scream split the still air. “No!” Emma shrieked. “Let me go! Let me go! Help! Help me!”

Nathan didn’t hesitate.

Duke was honestly only a step behind him. There was true terror in her voice.

They ran, pell-mell, through the forest towards the sounds of the struggle. Nathan bashed through a bramble bush, the thorns tearing through his clothes and skin alike. Duke fell in close behind him, using Nathan’s Trouble to his advantage and avoiding the worst of the thorns. Together, they stood shoulder to shoulder, guns drawn.

The armored commandos, wearing camouflage and helmets like they were neck-deep in Vietnam, had Emma pinned in the dirt. She was a frail-looking girl with nearly-white-blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and pale skin. Wearing her school uniform and her Trouble on full display, she made a strange sight. Her skin was covered in a glittering diamond-hard surface, protecting her from the rough treatment of both the Initiative and her father. When she saw them, she pleaded anew, sobbing into the carpet of pine needles.

“Hey,” Duke said to her. “It’s okay. We’re here now.”

Nathan leveled his gun at the Initiative’s leader, not that it was easy to tell who was in charge. The bastards bore no rankings, no sigils of battalions, or anything else that might identify them as the US Government’s most specialized task force. “Let her go,” Nathan demanded.

The commandos tightened their grip on Emma, pressing her harder into the ground. Her crying didn’t change, but her sobs were still gut-wrenching. She was just a little girl, a Troubled little girl.

“Lower your weapons,” the commander ordered.

“Not until you let her go,” Nathan snarled.

There was a snap of twig behind them and Duke glanced over his shoulder, hoping it was Audrey arriving to back them up. They could really use her FBI training and authority now. After all, Duke wasn’t even a real consultant and Nathan really was just a small-town cop who had seen too much. They weren’t cut out to talk their way out of this. Dealing with the Initiative soldiers alone seemed like a fast track to getting shot and buried under a mile of red tape. However, the snap wasn’t Audrey. They had been flanked by two more commandos.

Duke shouted in warning, managing only, “Nath—”

The soldier took Duke down with a swift blow to the kidneys that had his vision whiting out. He hit his knees, immediately slammed into the dirt with his arm twisted behind his back and his gun lying uselessly out of reach. It was all he could do to breathe and keep his eyes open.

A second soldier tried to do the same to Nathan, but the blow fell on dead nerves. Nathan whirled around, his gun leveled at the new soldier’s face. Helmet or no, a point-blank shot would paint the forest with his brains. “Let him up,” Nathan ground out. His blue eyes were steely, focused, unyielding. “Back off.”

The soldier let go of Duke reluctantly and stepped away, still standing too close for comfort.

Gasping, Duke grabbed his gun and wrestled back to his feet. His entire body was on fire and his legs were shaking.

“You,” the leader said to Nathan, “Why didn’t you feel that?”

Nathan didn’t answer, keeping the soldier in his sights.

A slow grin spread across the man’s face. “You’re one of them, aren’t you?”

“Let her go,” Nathan repeated. “You can’t take her.”

“I can detain anyone I want,” the leader told Nathan, “including you.”

The shot came off easy, so loud in the relative silence of the forest that Duke’s ears rang. Birds took flight, screeching. Emma gasped, her sobs momentarily going quiet with shock, as she and Duke stared in horror at the rose of blood blooming on Nathan’s upper shoulder. He stumbled when the bullet struck him, but didn’t fall. He kept his grip and his focus. He couldn’t feel it, after all.

The Initiative’s leader grinned and said, “He’s one of them. Take him too.”

Duke whirled on the soldiers behind them, prepared to fight, but they jammed a taser into his belly. He crumpled, firing off a single shot with the strength he had left. It struck the nearest soldier in the body armor, knocking the wind out of him, but was far from actually hurting him. Then, Duke’s numb fingers lost grip on the gun. The ground rushed up to meet him. His mouth exploded with blood, teeth sinking into his tongue.

Beside him, Nathan was wrestled down, getting off two more shots in the time it took them to snap his arms behind his back and cuff him. He thrashed, kicking with his long legs and bucking his entire body. Blood rolled freely from his shoulder, a dark stain that spread through his light shirt and dribbled on the ground. His face was wild, smeared with blood and dirt, scraped raw by the brambles.

“Stop fighting,” the Initiative leader ordered. “I’d hate to bring you in more damaged.”

“You shot him,” Emma sobbed. Her face shone and sparkled, wet beneath her tears. “You shot him. He’s a policeman.”

“Is he now?” the leader said condescendingly.

Nathan glared up into the commando’s face, teeth bared.

“You can’t feel any of it, can you? You’re a Hostile, just like her.”

Nathan thrashed further, trying to break free.

“Stop fighting or I’ll hurt the girl.”

Emma whimpered, cringing. Tears dripped down her shining face.

Nathan went still.

Two soldiers jerked Duke to his feet. His legs were tingling, pain slowly replacing the numbness that coursed through his body. He swayed between them, squinting at his fallen gun. What were his chances of snatching it up and actually doing some damage to them? He knew Audrey had to be on her way now, drawn to the commotion and shots ringing out. If they could only hold on for a few more minutes…

“What about this one?” a soldier asked. The nose of a rifle dug hard into Duke’s ribs.

“He’s a witness,” the leader said. “He knows about the Hostiles. Eliminate him.”

Duke’s head snapped up. No, no, that was not in the cards. He opened his mouth to protest, to barter, to tell them something—anything—that would keep him alive for just a few seconds longer.

Emma sobbed. Slowly, the diamond transformation melted from her limp body. She looked helpless, just a little girl, bound and weeping in the dirt.

With a roar, Nathan lashed himself against his captors. He headbutted one, his skull hitting the helmet with a terrible sound. He wobbled from the force but barreled through the soldiers without care for himself. He slammed into Duke from the side and the soldier holding him up lost his grip. They went down together in a heap and Duke was crushed under Nathan’s body. Warm blood pattered on Duke’s face and his eyes flared silver. For a moment, he felt the high and the strength. Was this Nathan’s plan—reveal that he was Troubled too or have him try to fight the commandos off with his blood power?

However, breathing hard and trembling all over from blood loss, Duke realized that wasn’t Nathan’s plan at all. He was just trying to keep Duke alive, using his body as a living shield. The soldiers wanted Nathan alive and relatively unspoiled. They now had to realize that such a thing would be impossible if they killed Duke. His breath sputtered, hands grappling at Nathan’s sides to take some weight off.

“Is that your friend?” the leader asked in the same poison-sweet voice he had used on Emma. “Fine, we’ll bring him too. We can always kill him later.”

Atop Duke, Nathan’s body went limp as the blood loss took over. He slumped, only his wet raspy breathing reassuring Duke that he was still alive. Duke tried to hold on to him, tried to keep his grip long enough for Audrey to find them, tried to reach his gun and at least take it with him. However, the last thing he saw was a boot coming down on his face. Then, there was nothing but darkness and pain.

…

When Duke came to, he was naked in a plexiglass cell. All around him, his surroundings were blinding from the whitewashed walls to the white linoleum to the powerful overhead fluorescents. There was a simple toilet in the corner, also white, and nothing else. The air conditioner was blasting and goosebumps broke out all over Duke’s exposed skin. It was worse than a prison cell.

Duke heaved himself upright and shuffled forward to lean against the glass front of the little cell. Even when he pressed his face and craned his neck, he couldn’t see anything besides the view directly in front of him. He had no idea where he was, only that the commandos had presumably taken him with Nathan and Emma. In the cell across, he could see another small slumped form. He rapped on the plexiglass shield, cleared his throat, and ventured, “Hey.”

The nude form stirred, slowly sitting up. Duke saw the fall of blonde hair and immediately feared the worst. Had Audrey been captured too? However, it wasn’t Audrey in the cell across from him but Emma. The little girl sat up and immediately drew her legs to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. Her diamond form washed over her, making her nearly impossible to look at in the bright light.

Duke shaded his eyes with one hand and slid down the glass to sit where she couldn’t see all his nakedness. “Hey, Emma,” he called gently. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“I-I don’t think so,” she said. Her voice was thin and reedy, strained with fear. “Where are we?”

“I don’t know,” Duke said. He bit back the urge to rely on sarcasm and risk frightening her more. “Can you see anything from your side?”

She peered around, blue eyes odd beneath the shield of diamond. “No, just you.”

Duke swallowed his curses. “Well, Emma, all we have to do is hold on,” he told her, “because my friend Audrey is going to be looking for us. She’ll find us and she’ll get us out of here.”

“R-really?” Emma whispered.

“Yes, really, Hostile 3?” the Initiative leader asked. He stepped into view easily, hands resting behind his back and combat boots thudding loudly on the floor. He had changed out of his camouflage gear and now wore his dress uniform. Major General Collins, Duke gleaned from the ribbons and nameplate. “Do you really think an FBI agent will be able to find this place? The FBI doesn’t even know we exist.”

Duke bit back a retort. The less they knew about Audrey, the better.

Collins smirked at Duke like he had won, like Duke’s silence was an admission of Audrey’s shortcomings.

Duke forced himself to look sad. Audrey would need the element of surprise if she was going to help them. Let Collins believe she was just an FBI Agent. Let him believe whatever he wanted.

Across the cellblock, Emma wept quietly into her hands.

Nearby, a door crashed open and there came a sound of wheels on linoleum. Duke tensed, his shoulder pressed to the plexiglass, unwilling to give Collins any quarter. He could think what he wanted, but Duke wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of showing fear. However, once he saw the gurney, all thoughts of the front he needed to show this bastard went out the window. Duke exploded to his feet, slamming painfully against the clear barricade before he remembered it was there.

“Nathan!” he shouted, beating his fists on the plexiglass.

Collins’ smirk spread impossibly wider, a hideous pleased cruel thing.

“You bastard,” Duke ground out.

Nathan was strapped naked to the steel gurney. Restrains bound his wrists and ankles, his hips and throat, his thighs and shoulders. Bruises already spilled beneath them where Nathan had fought. Currently, his head lolled to one side, blue eyes glazed and unfocused. His skin was swallow and sweaty. There were sutures in the bullet wound in his shoulder and holes poked in his elbows from an IV. Bandages and anesthetics hadn’t been wasted on him. He saw Duke, but didn’t react save a tiny pull in the corner of his mouth as though he didn’t have the energy.

“Nathan!” Duke shouted.

The pair of scrubbed nurses pushed the gurney passed by Duke’s cell and out of sight regardless of how he craned his neck to follow Nathan’s progress. There was a low tone and the door to the cell beside Duke’s opened with a hiss. Duke strained, listening to the sounds of the restraints being unfastened with jingles and rips. Then, there was the hard sound of naked flesh landing from a decent height. The nurses emerged too soon, quickly exiting the cell and slamming the clear door shut. Duke couldn’t see Nathan and hadn’t heard Nathan cry out, but he knew what they had done. They had dumped Nathan from the gurney without a care, throwing him down like so much garbage.

“Bastards,” Duke snarled at them as they passed.

The nurses didn’t even spare him a glance.

Only Collins observed his response with a wicked smile. “I see,” he said sweetly. “You care about Hostile 2. Are you lovers? How exactly does that work when he can’t feel you?”

Duke dashed his palm against the barrier in front of Collins’ face, but the Major General didn’t even flinch. “Go to hell,” Duke hissed.

Collins twisted his smile. With that, he turned on his heel and marched away.

The door slammed once. The nurses must have waited for him just out of sight, observing Duke’s reaction to Nathan’s treatment. Emma continued to weep quietly, her skinny arms drawn around her naked legs. Rainbows were thrown off her diamond skin, dancing across the white walls as she shivered and shook with sobs. Duke wasn’t the most paternal of people, but he wished there was something he could do for her. He wished he could give her a hug, at the very least. However, considering his own state of undress and what her diamond-skinned Trouble had protected her from, he knew such comforts were better left for Audrey. He had no doubts that she was searching for all of them.

Instead, Duke pressed himself into the corner of the cinderblock wall nearest to Nathan’s cell and called, “Nathan, hey, can you hear me?” He strained his ears, trying to hear Nathan breathing or moving over the hum of the powerful air conditioner. He shivered again, renewed goosebumps breaking across his skin. At least, Nathan couldn’t feel the cold—or the bullet wound that had been crudely stitched up or the IVs that looked as though they had been punched into him or the painful-sounding drop from the steel gurney. “Nathan,” Duke tried again. “Nathan, can you hear me?”

After a moment in which Duke feared Nathan was unconscious or worse, he finally heard a low groan. There was the sound of Nathan dragging himself across the linoleum, palms making smacking sounds until he must have reached the wall and leaned against it with a heavy breath. “Duke,” Nathan answered. “You’re alive.” He breathed out raggedly. “Thank God.”

Duke rested his forehead on the cold cinderblocks. “Yeah,” he agreed. “Yeah, I’m alive. You are too.”

Nathan probably nodded. He was silent on the other side of the wall.

“Emma’s here, too,” Duke supplied to fill the quiet. “She’s okay.”

“Audrey?” Nathan asked.

“I don’t think she’s here,” Duke said.

Nathan exhaled. “She’s looking for us.”

It was Duke’s turn to nod before he remembered that Nathan couldn’t see him. “She is,” he said aloud, “no doubt about it.”

“She’ll get us out,” Nathan said. The hope in his voice was painful, raw and sharp at the edges.

Duke wondered what else Collins had done to him. He wondered if Nathan even knew. If he couldn’t see it, it wasn’t as though he could feel it. Maybe Nathan had no idea the scope of what those nurses had done to him. Was that a blessing or a curse? Duke wondered.

“Duke?” Nathan ventured.

“I’m here, I’m here,” Duke said hastily. Like Emma, he wished he could comfort Nathan somehow. Yet, something more than his own nudity prevented that. Nathan wouldn’t be able to feel Duke even if Duke could touch him.

Silence stretched for a long moment as Nathan said nothing. Then, he made a slight sound, something that sounded almost like pain, but Duke knew that was impossible.

“Nathan?” Duke asked. “I’m here. What is it?”

“Nothing,” Nathan said finally.

Across the narrow cellblock, Emma had stopped crying. The diamond transformation slipped from her body, sliding down like a blanket falling away. The rainbows and brightness faded with her protection. She had cried herself to sleep, face buried in her folded arms, pale hair tangled over her shoulders.

Duke was unwilling to move from this one spot in his cell where he could hear Nathan and see Emma. He made himself as comfortable as he could, drawing his arms and legs in to preserve as much heat as possible. Invisible, out of Duke’s sight, he wondered what Nathan was doing. It was silent all around them save the churning fans of the air conditioner. The powerful lights kept Duke awake for a long time, his body strung on high alert. When he fell asleep, he wasn’t sure if it was because he was that tired or if a quiet sleeping gas had been cycled in with the air. Either way, when he woke, it was to screams.

XXX

Alright, everyone, I want to play a game to distract us from the pain. Let’s play ‘How many Buffy the Vampire Slayer References can you spot?’ I’ll give you the first one—I got the name of ‘The Initiative’ from Buffy. How many can you find?

Questions, comments, concerns?


	2. Darkness

“When humans act with cruelty, we characterize them as 'animals' yet the only animal that displays cruelty is humanity.” – Anthony Douglas Williams

XXX

At the sound of Emma’s terrified shrieks, Duke exploded from his slumped position. He smashed into the plexiglass wall again, forgetting that it was there in his haste. Collins was back. It could have been with the same two nurses or it might have been new ones. Duke couldn’t tell for the scrubs and facemasks they wore. Collins watched, his hands at parade rest, as the two nurses headed into Emma’s cell and wrestled her onto a steel gurney. Her diamond skin washed over her, throwing off blinding light as she thrashed and struggled, but she was no match for the strength of two grown men.

The nurses wrestled her, naked, onto the gurney and strapped her down. She was so small that her legs didn’t even reach the ankle restraints, but she couldn’t break free regardless. Blonde hair flying as she tossed her head, diamond eyes lighting on Duke’s face pleadingly, tears rolling down her cheeks, naked legs spread, little breasts heaving as she sucked in air to scream—Duke knew he would be seeing that in his nightmares for years to come.

“Stop!” Nathan shouted.

Duke jolted at the sound of Nathan battering himself against the cell door.

“Leave her alone!” Nathan shouted. “Take me instead!”

The nurses rolled her away, the wheels squeaking on the linoleum as Emma’s screams tapered off.

Collins threw a smirk at Duke as though to say, ‘Watch this.’

Duke bared his teeth, animalistic fury welling up inside him. He didn’t bother to bash himself against the door like Nathan. He knew the plexiglass wouldn’t give.

However, Collins stepped out of Duke’s line of sight and said to Nathan in a poisonous voice, “Take you instead?”

Duke could hear Nathan panting. It was on the tip of his tongue to tell Nathan not to answer, not to play into Collins’ game, but then Emma screamed again. Her voice was high and panicked. How could anyone listen to the sounds of a little girl screaming and not do whatever they could to help?

“Yes,” Nathan answered.

Collins was silent a moment. Then, he responded, “Today, I’m going to see how much Hostile 4 can take before her diamond skin gives out.”

There was the sound of Nathan throwing himself at the glass again to no avail.

Duke could hear the smirk in Collins voice as he said, “I wonder how much you can take before you give out.”

Emma screamed again, her voice twisting and choking.

With that, Collins passed by Duke’s cell on his way out.

“No!” Nathan shouted at his back. “No! Let her go!”

There was the sound of a door slamming and Emma’s screams were gone. Duke paced the length of his cell, shivering, but there was only the sound of Nathan’s continued pounding on the barrier and the air conditioner. Once he was relatively sure Collins was gone, he shouted to be heard over Nathan’s assault.

“Nathan! Stop, you’re only hurting yourself,” Duke told him.

The pounding stopped slowly, Nathan giving the plexiglass another shot with his fist before exhaling exhaustedly. “So what?” he bit out, then added dryly, “I can’t feel it anyway.”

“I know you can’t,” Duke said softly. He leaned his forehead against the barrier, trying to look sidelong at Nathan’s cell to no avail. “But you should save your strength.”

“For what?” Nathan asked. His voice was low and dejected already.

“For whatever comes next,” Duke said. He shivered again, the cold getting to him almost as much as being trapped in this tiny cell. “We have to keep our wits about us, Nathan. We have to keep it together until Audrey comes for us.”

Nathan breathed out shakily. “Right,” he agreed. “You’re right.”

Nathan made sounds as he circled his cell, checking for vulnerabilities and finding done as Duke had already tried. Naked, without any tools, there was no way they were getting out of these cells alone. Even if they did, who knew how many well-armed commandos were waiting on the other side of these walls. They would be put down like dogs, shunted back into the cells, and punished in some terrible way, Duke was sure. He swallowed, listening absently until Nathan threw himself back down with a huff.

“There’s no way out on your side, either, huh?” Duke asked, even though he knew the answer.

“None,” Nathan admitted.

Duke put his back to the wall his cell shared with Nathan’s and slid down, sitting so that he could see the second that bastard Collins came back with Emma. He heard Nathan shifting around and assumed he did the same, although maybe not facing Emma’s cell since he couldn’t see her anyway. It comforted Duke to imagine Nathan’s strong back against his own. They were together in this. They were all they had until Audrey came. Duke swallowed, feeling the golf ball of panic lodged in his throat threaten to choke him. He closed his eyes and forced himself not to think about the barren white walls. They weren’t closing in on him.

‘Keep it together,’ Duke reminded himself, ‘just until Audrey comes.’ He leaned his head against the bricks.

“Audrey is coming for us,” Nathan said aloud.

“Yeah,” Duke agreed. “Just hang in there.”

It took a moment before Nathan said, “You too.”

Duke swallowed again, his throat tighter for hearing Nathan confirm there was no way out. “I am.”

…

Duke had no idea how much time had passed since Collins and the nurses had ushered Emma out like a pig to slaughter. Part of Duke worried that she wouldn’t come back—that he would have to watch Collins spirit Nathan away too, that Nathan would never come back, that Duke would then be alone in this tiny white space until he went mad. It felt like days but was more likely hours before the doors slammed open again and the sound of shoes squeaked on the linoleum. Duke jumped to his feet, pressing himself against the glass.

“Who’s there?” Nathan demanded. There was the sound of his body colliding with the glass barricade.

Duke wasn’t sure who exactly he was talking to.

The nurses ignored them both. Clinically, they rolled Emma back into her cell, unfastened all the restraints, and lifted her off the gurney. Duke was gratified to see that they didn’t just throw her down the way they had Nathan. The instant Emma’s feet touched the floor and the nurses let go, she scrambled into the corner of her cell and sat there, shuddering all over with her legs clutched to her chest. There was a tiny cut on her cheek, stitched daintily, and Duke couldn’t see any other injuries. He wasn’t sure if he was relieved or horrified.

The nurses rolled the gurney out, slid her cell door shut, and locked it again. They disappeared in an instant, the door slamming behind them.

“Duke?” Nathan asked. “What is it? I can’t see.”

“It’s Emma,” Duke told him. He crouched down near the glass where Emma could see him and pressed his palm to the barrier. “She’s back.”

Nathan hissed a breath, going quiet on the other side of the wall. “Is she…?”

“She looks okay,” Duke said. “Emma, hey?”

The girl’s face snapped up, blue eyes red-rimmed and filled with tears. She shivered, rocking herself, arms around her shoulders like a castle.

“Emma,” Duke asked softly, gently. “Are you hurt?”

Her voice was a shade above a whisper, weak and small, hoarse from screaming. “Here,” she murmured and pointed to her cheek. “H-he cut me. He kept cutting me. He broke his scalpel, over and over and over, until I couldn’t take anymore. I—my Trouble went away and h-he cut me.”

Duke breathed out, his lungs too tight to speak.

“It’s okay,” Nathan said to Emma even though he couldn’t see her. “They’ll take me next time. I’ll make sure of it.”

Duke’s heart skipped a beat, sputtering behind the cage of his ribs.

Emma didn’t look relieved. Her face was the same mask of horror that it had been since they learned what her father did to her in the dark. Duke hated to think that they were losing her, that soon she wouldn’t believe anyone was able to help her, all because these Initiative bastards had caught them.

“Emma,” he called gently.

She didn’t respond. Instead, she buried her face into her arms and cried silently, little bare shoulders trembling.

Duke wanted to punch the plexiglass barrier, but restrained himself. If he broke his knuckles, he wouldn’t be able to punch someone when it really counted—if he ever had the chance. He moved back to his earlier position, sitting with his back to the shared wall of Nathan’s cell. He said quietly to Nathan, “She’s in shock.”

Nathan breathed out. “Is she… Did they hurt her?”

“A little cut on her face,” Duke said, “stitched up like yours.”

“They want us alive,” Nathan muttered.

“They want you two alive,” Duke said. They didn’t know he was Troubled too. He wasn’t sure it would be better or worse if they knew.

Nathan breathed out hard, unwilling to speak. It was probably better they didn’t know about Duke’s Trouble. His super-strength was the kind of thing that might be able to save them if the moment came.

“How are you going to make sure they take you next time?” Duke asked.

“I don’t know,” Nathan said. “I’ll have to think of something.”

Duke didn’t offer any suggestions. He glanced at Emma, the blood drying on her cheek in the frigid air.

It didn’t feel like long before the door opened again. Emma snapped her head up at the sound footsteps, blue eyes wide with terror. Duke didn’t need her to see him naked, so he stayed where he was pressed against the cell wall. It also afforded him a clear view of the nurses the moment they stepped between the cells. Nathan had jumped to his feet, fists hitting the door hard. One nurse pushed a small rolling cart with covered plates on it, the second carried a club with a pronged end. Duke had a feeling he knew what it would feel like if that touched him. He thought of Nathan’s unfeeling body. Would he still be incapacitated by the taser?

The nurses opened Emma’s cell and the girl scrambled backwards, shuddering, her hands outstretched pleadingly. The stitches were dark against her pale face. The nurse set a single plate inside without silverware. The second thumped the club against his palm, a threat that Emma didn't need. She didn't even move towards the food, cowering silently in the corner.

They crossed the aisle and did the same to Duke. Wisely, he chose not to try to attack them. It wouldn’t do him any good right now. He was weak from the blows that had knocked him out, couldn’t remember the last time he had eaten, had nothing that would pass for a weapon besides his bare fists, and no clothes. Duke had no aspirations of safely getting himself, Nathan, and Emma out right now. However, Duke didn't show them any fear. He didn't move from his position, even when the first nurse moved tantalizingly close. He let them put down the plate and watched the door latch again.

The nurses moved out of view with their trolley. Duke could only hope Nathan had the same sense. However, he heard the lock click open and then Nathan threw himself forward with a roar. Duke's head jerked as Nathan barreled past the nurse. The second nurse had stepped backwards, giving the illusion of fright, but Duke saw that this wasn't a fair fight at all. It was a show of power.

“Nathan!” he shouted. “Don't!”

Unable to feel his weakness or the earlier bullet wound, Nathan flung a wild punch at the nurse. He was between their cells now, on full display between Duke and Emma. The second nurse sidestepped, brought the club down with a crunch into Nathan's knee, and then pressed the prongs into his belly. Regardless of his inability to feel, the volts were enough to scramble Nathan's neurons. He dropped like a stone, limbs twitching with the current. The nurse held the prod to Nathan for a long time—painfully long, long enough that Nathan didn't scream with unfelt anguish but a low whine escaped his clenched teeth.

Emma screamed, fear and horror rising up inside her at the sight of him crumpled like a broken doll.

Still holding the prod to Nathan’s body, the nurse kicked him crudely.

Duke hadn't realized that he had moved until the plexiglass came up to meet him. “Stop it!” he shouted at the nurse. “You’re going to kill him!”

The nurse’s grin was hidden by a facemask, but Duke knew he was smiling with delight at the fresh bloom of bruises on Nathan’s body. He withdrew the prod, crackling it once at Duke.

Even with the barrier of plexiglass between them, Duke couldn’t help but flinch at the arch of handheld lightning. “Nathan, Nathan,” he said urgently, trying to ignore the nurse.

Nathan's blue eyes were unfocused, his jaw slack. Fresh blood oozed from his mangled shoulder.

Without a word, the nurses dragged Nathan back into his cell, locked it, and merrily pushed the trolley back the way they had come. The door slammed.

Duke shuffled towards the wall his cell shared with Nathan's, calling his name.

It took a long time for Nathan to respond, weakly answering, “I'm 'ere, Duke. 'm okay. Didn't feel it.”

Duke shuddered out a watery breath, his chest hitching. “Don't do that. Don't play into their hands. Save your strength.”

Nathan murmured some kind of agreement.

Relieved, Duke paced back to the plate. The food was low quality, the kind of thing that would come out of a prison cafeteria, but at least it was something. Stone cold, Duke ate it with his fingers, swallowing the grainy mashed potatoes and flavorless meatloaf. He almost felt bad for anyone that had to live off this slop.

“Emma,” he said and forced a swallow. “You should eat.”

“I'm not hungry,” she said and didn't move from her corner. Her knuckles were white where they wrapped around her knees.

“When was the last time you ate something?” Duke asked, wishing for some salt and whiskey.

“I don't know,” she murmured softly, “before you guys started looking for me.”

“That was who-knows-how long ago,” Duke said. “You should eat. Just a little. Just a few bites, okay?”

Emma stared at him for a minute before nodding once. She inched forward, picked up the plate, and poked at the potatoes with a fingertip.

“They're not as bad as they look,” Duke told her.

Emma ventured a bite and made a face.

“But they're still pretty bad,” Duke said with a light chuckle. “Once we get out of here, come to the Grey Gull. I'll make you whatever you want.”

“Anything?” Emma asked.

“Anything,” Duke confirmed. He finished off the soggy green beans and put the plate aside.

“Even chocolate cake?”

“I’ll make the best chocolate cake you've ever had in your life,” Duke told her cheerfully.

Emma giggled and worked on her food.

Duke called, “Nathan?”

“I’m eating,” he assured Duke. “Tastes awful.”

“It's not pancakes, but I'll make you some of those once we get out of here,” Duke told Nathan.

Nathan was quiet for a moment, but Duke heard the smile in his voice when he responded, “Blueberry pancakes?”

“With real maple syrup,” Duke said.

Nathan chuckled and presumably finished off the meal.

Duke watched Emma scoot back into her corner, but her face was no longer bleak with terror. She just looked exhausted. Duke wasn't sure he wanted to know what Nathan looked like. Beneath the smell of congealed gravy and mystery meat, Duke thought he could smell burned flesh. He could only hope that was the smell of their dinner and not Nathan's body. Duke wanted nothing more than to turn the tables on that cruel nurse, on Collins, on all these Initiative bastards.

“We should try to get some sleep,” Duke called to them.

Nathan didn't answer. Maybe he had fallen asleep or maybe he was unconscious—or dead.

Duke tamped down his panic.

Emma rested her chin on her folded arms, a tear sliding down her cheek. “I can't sleep here,” she whispered. “I'm scared and it's cold.”

Duke made himself as comfortable as he could, resting his head against the wall. “It'll be okay,” he said. “How about I tell you a story?”

Emma's eyes lit up. “Please.”

Duke nodded and thought for a moment. “Once upon a time, there was a pretty blonde girl. It was late and she was walking home alone when she thought she'd take a shortcut through a dark alley. She didn't know there was a monster lying in wait for her. However, the vampire was the one who really didn't know what was in store for him...”

…

Duke woke to the sound of Nathan shouting and pounding his fists against the plexiglass. Emma wasn’t screaming. There was only the sound of Nathan threatening, bargaining, pleading, swearing. He beat against the barrier, sounds of exertion echoing hollowly in the barren cellblock.

Duke tried to sit up, tried to see what was going on, but his limbs were uncooperative. He watched his hands as though in slow motion as they scrambled for purchase on the slick glass and linoleum. His joints felt swollen, his bones hollow, his muscles like liquid, and his head swam violently.

Drugged, he realized. The food must have been drugged—only his and Emma’s, by the sound of Nathan’s vigorous struggles.

Across from his cell, he saw that Collins was back. His smirking face twisted horrifically like something from a nightmare, the crooked grin stretching and splitting his features as he leered down at Duke. Two nurses manhandled Emma off the floor and onto a gurney once again, strapping her little body down clinically.

Duke tried to move towards the front of the cell, but his hands wouldn’t move. He tried to move his legs, tried to crawl, anything. His entire body was tingling. His vision swam, the nightmare of Collins’ face blurring in and out like a bad station on a radio. The nurses began to push Emma away and she made a pitiful sound, part-whimper, part-plea.

Nathan was still shouting, pounding his fists on the glass.

As though through deep water, Duke saw Collins turn towards Nathan and vanish from his sightline. Through the haze of drugs, Duke heard Collins say, “Calm down, Hostile 2. You’re just going to hurt yourself more.”

‘More,’ Duke thought. How badly was Nathan hurt already?

“Don’t take her,” Nathan demanded. He pounded the glass for emphasis. “Take me instead.”

“Why?” Collins remarked. “You can’t feel anything I’ll do to you.”

Nathan growled or maybe he was choking.

Duke tried to roll over, tried to get his hands and knees underneath himself. His stomach lurched, nausea crawling up inside his chest like a rabid beast. It clawed at his guts.

“Tell me, Hostile 2, why should I take you instead of her?”

Nathan didn’t have an answer.

“Should I take you or your friend? He’d be easy to make scream, wouldn’t he? No diamond skin, no idiopathic nerves, just a simple human who had the misfortune of making friends with you.”

“Leave Duke alone,” Nathan ground out. “Take me instead.”

Collins chuckled. Then, nastily, he said, “Alright.”

Duke watched through bleary eyes as a second set of nurses—or maybe it was the same ones who had taken Emma—came through with another prod and steel gurney. The cell slid open again and Nathan made a terrible sound. Duke didn’t know if he had tried to fight or if they had just put him down with that electric weapon. A moment later, the nurses rolled Nathan past.

Duke’s vision was too hazy to make out the state Nathan was in. However, he saw explosions of red in his sight. Was it blood? Was Nathan bleeding? Or what it just an effect of the drugs flooding his system? Nathan was gone too quickly for Duke to figure it out. The door slammed and it was just him and Collins, the Major General silently laughing as Duke struggled to sit up. He watched for a minute, not saying anything, as Duke tried and failed to coordinate his limbs. Then, no longer amused with the display, Collins just walked away.

The door slammed, a loud bang that jolted Duke’s raw nerves. He put his hand to the cell door, tried to find purchase to lift himself up, couldn’t, and collapsed again. Dizzy, winded, he lay in a heap against the front of the cell. He comforted himself in knowing that he would see Emma or Nathan the instant they returned.

He had to believe that they would return. Collins wouldn’t kill them so soon, would he?

Panic welled up in Duke’s chest, pushing aside the nausea. He tried more desperately to get up. He couldn’t be alone here, trapped in his tiny cell. He felt the walls closing in, suffocating him, choking him. There was no breeze here, no smell of the sea, no sunlight on his face, nothing—only the cold chemical air conditioning, the lingering smell of burned skin, the stench of his own sweat and fear.

The lingering drugs fought his panic attack, wrestled it down, and won.

Duke slipped back into unconsciousness with the taste of blood heavy in his mouth.

…

“Duke?” came a female voice. “Duke, please, please.” Her voice caught, fluttering, cracking. “Duke, wake up.” She sobbed, a tiny broken sound that rattled in the forefront of Duke’s mind.

“Audrey?” he wondered, her name swimming out of him.

Weakly, he pulled his arms and legs in. The linoleum was icy-cold on his feverish skin. Dizzy, he half-dragged half-crawled up the plexiglass door until he could slump against it. It was so bright. His eyes stung all over again. He shivered, clutching his arms around himself. It was so cold, so bright, everything was blurry and painful. He licked his dry lips, squinting at the pale shape on the other side of the door. He could make out a fall of blonde hair, white skin, and blue eyes—naked, skinny, small breasts, a big bruise on her ribs. His mind swam back through the fuzz of drugs and he averted his eyes.

“Emma,” he forced out. His throat ached, scraped raw like he had been screaming. “What is it?”

“You’re okay,” she said with relief. “Duke, please.”

He swallowed the cold nausea building inside his chest. “What is it?”

“It’s Nathan. He—”

The door crashed open and Emma dropped back, whimpering, curling her arms around herself. She had a new injury, Duke noticed, a stitched-up wound at her shoulder. It was dark and deep, dried blood crusted at the edges. He wondered absently how long her diamond skin had held out this time, if at all through the round of drugs she had been given along with him. Her dose must have been lighter since she looked better and he still felt like roadkill.

Collins marched into view, bending at the waist to squint at Duke through the glass. “Come to, have you, Hostile 3? I was beginning to think the dose was too much for you.”

Duke swallowed, unable to think of what to say. Had the intention been to kill him?

Collins paced over, out of sight, to stand before Nathan’s cell. There was a moment of silence, then a loud bang as Collins slammed his hand against the glass.

Duke jolted, the sound racing through his pounding head.

However, Nathan didn’t jolt—Nathan screamed. Nathan’s voice was mangled, high with fear and anguish, shredded at the edges.

Collins chuckled lowly.

Emma started weeping, her face hidden behind her hands.

“What did you do?” Duke ground out. He tried to haul himself up, but his legs trembled violently. His stomach threatened to heave. He couldn’t stand—couldn’t risk throwing up in front of Collins, couldn’t show weakness. “What did you do to Nathan?”

Collins didn’t answer. He rapped his knuckles on Duke’s cell door as he passed, then Emma’s, and the door slammed behind him.

Panic gave Duke strength now. He could hear Nathan making little sounds of fear and agony, whimpering and sniffling. Emma was still crying, her tiny voice nearly lost beneath the whine of the eternal air conditioner. Duke managed to get to his knees, leaning his full weight against the door, face pressed to the cold plexiglass, but to no avail. As before, he couldn’t see into Nathan’s cell.

“Emma,” Duke asked desperately. “What is it? What did that bastard do to Nathan?”

She sniffled and shook her head, tears rolling down her face.

“Nathan, Nathan,” Duke said urgently. “Talk to me, please. Nathan.”

It took Nathan a long painful moment to answer. Duke could hear him dragging himself across the floor, his bare palms slapping, his feet scuffling. He was still making those tiny sounds of suffering. Duke’s mind filled with awful images—of Nathan’s legs severed below the knees, of Nathan’s fingers all broken, of Nathan’s organs spilling and splitting on the white walls and floor. He forced those thoughts away, swallowing back bile and fear.

“Nathan,” Duke said again. “Nathan, please, talk to me.”

“Duke,” Nathan rasped finally.

Relief weakened Duke’s knees. He sank to them, pressed against the corner of the cell nearest to Nathan. “Talk to me,” he pleaded. “Just, please, keep talking to me.”

“Duke,” Nathan whispered. Then, Duke heard the most chilling sound from his longtime-friend-sometimes-enemy. Nathan sobbed, a jagged sound that tore from his throat and echoed inside Duke’s heart.

“Nathan,” he said urgently. “What is it? Please.”

“I can’t…” Nathan choked out, whimpering. “I can’t s-see.”

Duke’s heart stopped. For a moment, all he heard was the thundering beat of his own heart. “W-what?”

“I can’t see,” Nathan repeated in a broken voice. “I can’t see, I can’t see.” His gasping breaths whistled in his chest, panic verging into a crippling attack.

Duke hastily tried to pull him out of it. “Nathan,” he said. “Nathan, listen to me. It’s going to be—” How could he tell Nathan that it would be okay? Nathan couldn’t feel his skin, couldn’t feel pain or pleasure or the wind in his face. All Nathan had was his sight, his hearing, his sense of taste and smell. If he couldn’t see, if that bastard Collins had blinded him—Duke wouldn’t rest until he had torn him limb from limb, slowly.

“Duke?” Nathan said fearfully.

“Audrey will come for us,” Duke told him instead. “Okay? I know you can’t feel any pain and you can’t feel yourself either. It might not be that bad. It might be,” Duke swallowed, “reversible.”

Nathan gave a watery sob. “I can’t see, Duke.”

Duke wedged his fingers in the little crack between the sliding plexiglass door and the cinderblock wall. However, there wasn’t nearly enough room or leverage for anything. Even if he could reach Nathan, Nathan wouldn’t be able to feel it—and now, he couldn’t see Duke reaching for him either. Duke swallowed the lump in his throat, feeling like it was suffocating him.

“I can’t see,” Nathan whimpered again. “Duke, please…”

“Hey, hey,” Duke said gently. “How about I… I’ll continue my story from last night, okay? Do you want to listen to me?”

Nathan was quiet for a long moment, dragging pieces of himself back together. He sniffled and then whispered, “Yeah.”

“How about you, Emma?” Duke called to her, resting his back against the cold wall. “Do you want to hear more of my story?”

Her blue eyes were luminous, shiny with tears, and red-rimmed. Duke wondered what she was thinking. Was she losing hope, like Nathan? She had been brutalized by her own father, fled from the cops because she didn’t believe they would help her, been captured right along with them, and now had to watch as Nathan, a police officer, was methodically stripped of his strength by a psychotic bastard like Collins. Slowly, despite everything, she nodded.

Duke kept his eyes open, fighting the pull of the drugs still in his system, squinting into the bright fluorescents. “Right, so where was I?”

“The vampire slayer had just gone into the underground to face the Master,” Emma supplied with a little wan smile.

Duke nodded to her. “Right, I was. Nathan, are you with me?”

“I’m listening,” Nathan said in a small voice.

That was really all Duke could ask. “So, she’s wearing her finest battle garb as she heads into the Master’s lair beneath the earth. He’s an ugly brute, a little too much like a bat for the fairytales, but that’s okay because she’s no fairytale-princess-damsel-in-distress either. She couldn’t have asked for a more worthy adversary to kill her…”

XXX

I'm posting this today because I'm going to be working all day tomorrow and know time will get away from me.

Questions, comments, concerns?


	3. Silence

“Vivisection is a social evil because if it advances human knowledge, it does so at the expense of human character.” – George Bernard Shaw

XXX

Duke kept talking long after Emma had fallen asleep, exhausted, in the corner of her cell with a frail smile on her little face. His throat dry and sore, he swallowed before venturing Nathan’s name. The air conditioner hummed in the void, blowing more and more cold air on Duke. He rubbed his icy toes between his palms, wincing. Nathan didn’t respond. If he had managed to fall asleep, Duke didn’t want to risk waking him. However, worries that Nathan had quietly died from blood loss he couldn’t see or some horrible injury that he couldn’t feel plagued Duke.

The door opened at a civilized volume, not crashing or banging into the wall. Quiet squeaky footsteps entered the cellblock. A nurse, Duke realized, just one. Maybe this could be his chance.

The single nurse came into view bearing a rolling cart with food again. This nurse was slight and short, a woman, and alone. However, the electric prod hung from her belt and the thought to fight drained out of Duke. Even if he got the jump on this one female nurse—and that was a big if with that overpowered taser on her side—Duke was still naked and lost. He had Emma to think of and if Nathan was blind, he couldn’t count on his help either. He couldn’t get them out, not alone, or else he couldn’t get them all out, but he absolutely would not consider leaving one of them behind. He just had to wait for Audrey to come for them, try to keep everyone together until then.

The nurse unlocked Emma’s cell quietly, mindful that she was sleeping, and set the food inside. She left the cover on the plate in a pathetic attempt to keep it warm for her or maybe in a pathetic attempt to get her to drop her guard around them. She closed the door softly and Emma didn’t wake.

Duke watched silently, his eyes narrowed into slits, as the young nurse turned to give Duke another batch of drugged food. When she saw that Duke was awake and glowering at her, she startled and almost dropped the plate. In an instant, she schooled her features behind her facemask and unlocked the door with a steady hand. Duke didn’t move, just watched as she set down the plate and lifted the lid. It was breakfast food, powdered scrambled eggs, sad undercooked bacon, and dry toast with a carton of juice from concentrate. She closed Duke’s door and pushed the cart towards Nathan’s cell.

The instant she rounded the cell, she gasped loudly.

Duke couldn’t help it. He jerked to his feet, plastering himself against the plexiglass front. He could just see part of the nurse in the corner of his eye, standing there in shock with her hands clasped to her mouth. “Is he d—” Duke choked out, unable to speak aloud his worst fears.

She didn’t move. He couldn’t see her any better, but she answered lowly. “N-no,” she told Duke. “He’s alive.”

Relief turned Duke’s bones to liquid. He sagged, skin sticking unpleasantly to the glass. “Thank god.”

She unlocked Nathan’s cell and set the food inside. Nathan must have woken, there was a crash and a yelp as he scrambled away from her. Blinded, it sounded like he had hit the cinderblock wall hard, not that he could feel that.

“Hey, it’s okay,” the nurse said gingerly. “I’m just bringing you something to eat, okay? I’m leaving it here.” She tapped her knuckles purposefully on the linoleum.

Nathan’s little whimpering gasps fell quiet.

“There you go,” the nurse said. “Try to eat, okay?” Her voice was kind and a different thought took up root in Duke’s skull. Maybe they weren’t the only ones who could try to get someone to drop their guard.

Duke turned towards her, trying to keep his posture as non-threatening as possible. The nurse came back into view, pushing an empty cart. “Hey,” he said quietly, hoping his voice wasn’t as rough as it felt.

She paused, glancing at him from behind her mask. “Yes?”

“Nathan won’t be able to eat like that,” Duke said softly. “He can’t feel anything and now he can’t see either. He’s going to starve.”

“Major General Collins won’t let that happen,” she assured Duke.

Duke worked a little harder, laying on the charm he knew he had. “What’s your name? Mine is Duke.”

She turned her attention away from him, tightening her grip on the cart.

Duke saw his opportunity slip away. “Wait, please,” he begged. “Let me—please, let me help him.”

She paused again. Unlike the other bastards who had manhandled Emma and dropped Nathan from the gurney cruelly, she must have come to work here for different reason. Duke could tell she was compassionate, that she cared, that she didn’t want to see people suffer unnecessarily. He wondered how she had come to work some place like this.

“I’ll help him,” the nurse said finally. She released her grip on the cart and turned back to Nathan’s cell.

“He won’t let you,” Duke said carefully.

She paused again, hesitating.

“Your people just blinded him,” Duke told her. “He won’t trust you enough to let you get close, but he trusts me. I can help him eat.”

The nurse folded her arms across her chest, but the movement was defensive, not aggressive.

“If we don’t eat when you left us, what happens to you?” Duke realized.

She tensed and he knew he was right. They weren’t the only ones trapped here.

“Let me help him eat,” Duke said again. “It’s a win-win for you.”

“Until you turn the tables on me,” she said coldly.

“I won’t, I promise,” Duke said. “Put that cattle prod right against me. Hold it there the whole time. I won’t do anything. I just want to help Nathan.”

Her face worked behind her mask. She must have been biting her lip. “Okay,” she said finally.

Duke nearly collapsed with relief.

“But if you try anything, I swear I’ll jolt you within an inch of your life and then I’ll have Green bring you your meals. He’ll just force-feed you with a tube.”

Nausea clawed inside Duke at the image of someone doing that to Emma, to Nathan, to him. “I won’t try anything.”

With a quick glance at the closed doors, the nurse unlocked Duke’s cell and tightened her grip on her prod. True to his word, Duke stepped slowly from the cell and kept his hands where she could see them. He wasn’t the only one risking something here. Who knew that Collins would do with an escapee?

It took only a single step to be able to see into Nathan’s cell. It was identical to the one Duke was in, the one Emma was in, probably to the entire cell block was the same. Like Emma, Nathan was crammed into the corner, his bare feet scrambling even now as he tried to push himself away. He was nude as well and violently peppered with injuries. His ankle was swollen darkly from the tumble in the forest, the bullet wound in his shoulder wept fresh blood, his sides and limbs were bruised, and there was a large burn on his ribs where the prod had been pressed. Where each restraint had touched him on the gurney, his skin was raw and weeping. 

Worst of all was the horrific metal band secured over Nathan’s eyes. It cut into his cheeks and forehead, molded to his face, with bolts in the middle. Duke’s stomach heaved at the sight and he forced himself not to think about how it was attached to Nathan’s head. Was it drilled into him? Could it be removed? He reached out, first instinct to run to Nathan and try to help, but the cell was still locked. It forced him to stop, to draw in a breath, to think. He found that his hands were shaking wildly.

The nurse shifted ahead of him and unlocked the cell with her keycard. The door swooshed open.

Duke didn’t hesitate. He stepped into the cell and approached. “Nathan, Nathan,” he said gently. “It’s me, it’s Duke.”

“Duke?” Nathan whispered. His teeth chattered. “Are we—is Audrey—?”

“Not yet, okay, not yet. Just hold on. I’m going to help you, okay.”

Nathan nodded mechanically.

Duke picked up the plate and carried it over. “There’s breakfast. I’m going to help you eat it, okay?”

Nathan shook his head. The metal band knocked on the cinderblocks and he startled at the sound. “Duke, I can’t see. Is it—you can see me, right? Is it permanent? Did they—blind me?”

“I don’t know, Nate,” Duke said softly. The pet name from their youth slid out of him. He couldn’t bear the sight of Nathan like this. “I don’t know. Please, just eat.”

Nathan reached out blindly, unable to see or feel Duke.

“I’ve got you,” Duke said as he took Nathan’s cold hand. “I’ve got you. I’m here.”

Nathan let out a shuddery breath. “Duke,” he whimpered.

“Just a few minutes,” the nurse said weakly. “That’s all I can give you.”

Nathan jolted at her voice, fingernails biting into Duke’s hand. “Who is that?” Panic pitched the question.

“A nice nurse,” Duke explained. “She let me in to help you eat. Here, have a bite.”

Nathan tilted his head away. “What nurse?”

Duke glanced over his shoulder at her.

“I—my name is Riley,” she said softly.

“Riley,” Duke confirmed for Nathan. “Please, eat.”

Nathan opened his mouth obediently, letting Duke feed him. “It’s terrible.”

“I know,” Duke said, unable to stifle the mad chuckle that well inside his throat. “Remember, once we get out of here, I’ll make you whatever you want at the Gull, okay?”

Nathan nodded and ate more.

Riley hung back, the prod clutched in her gloved hands, but she didn’t keep it jammed up against Duke’s back the way he had expected. He was grateful for that. He wasn’t sure he would be able to feed Nathan quickly enough while his hands shook so badly. She shifted a little, shoes squeaking on the linoleum.

Duke polished off the plate quickly and gave Nathan’s hand a helpless squeeze. “I have to go,” he said softly. “I’m here with you, right on the other side of the wall. You’ll still be able to hear me, okay?”

Nathan clutched Duke’s hand, repeating painfully, “Can’t see, Duke.”

“I know,” Duke said. He pried Nathan’s fingers off, knowing that he couldn’t draw any comfort from the touch anyway. “I know, Nate. I’m here with you. I’m right here.”

Riley kept the prod pointed at him while she locked up Nathan’s cell. She put Duke back in his, locked the door, and seemed to sag with relief.

“See? I’m a man of my word,” Duke told her once the door was bolted.

“Are you a man?” Riley asked.

The question surprised him. “Of course,” he said.

Riley’s cheeks were pink. “No, I mean, are you even human?”

Duke’s heart clenched. “Yes,” he told her. “We all are. Nathan and Emma just have a little something extra. Where we live, they call it Troubled.”

Riley’s mouth worked behind her mask. “Here, we call it Hostile.”

Duke swallowed. “We’re human,” he assured her. He didn’t know what else to say. Should he tell her about Nathan’s decoupage, about Emma’s love of soccer, about his life at the Grey Gull? Would telling her those things make them more human in her eyes? Would it even matter? Riley was just one nurse.

“The person you think is coming for you,” Riley ventured, “what was her name?”

Duke wasn’t sure if he should tell her, but he supposed the Initiative already knew about Audrey. They probably didn’t think she was a threat to them and why would Riley assume any differently? He wet his lips and told her, “Audrey.”

“I overheard Major General Collins talking about her,” Riley said softly. “She’s in the FBI, right?”

Duke nodded.

Riley didn’t ask anything else. Instead, she said, “Eat what I brought you. It isn’t dosed today.”

The thought of more drugs made Duke sick. “Not today?” he repeated, fishing for information.

Riley didn’t give him any. She reattached her prod to her waist, grasped her cart, and disappeared.

Duke sank down with his back to Nathan’s wall, beginning to think of it as his spot, like Emma and her corner across the hall. He grasped the plate and pulled it into his lap. The food had gone cold in the time he spent with Nathan. It was dry and gritty, the grease congealed on the bacon, and the toast almost too sharp to chew. Duke ate it all anyway and drank the carton of juice.

When the sounds of his eating stopped, Nathan’s voice came, “Duke?”

“I’m here,” he assured Nathan.

“Talk to me,” Nathan asked. “Please. Tell me more of your story.”

“You’ll have to hear it again tomorrow when I tell it to Emma,” Duke told him.

“That’s okay.”

Nodding to himself, Duke picked up the tale of the blonde Vampire Slayer where he had left off. He regaled Nathan with the story of her finding herself in a dimension where identity was stripped away. She was a clever girl and didn’t give up. She found herself in that pit and she climbed out. When she climbed out, she brought everyone with her, blinking into the sunlight.

…

“Rise and shine, Hostile 3.”

Duke woke with a knot in his neck, his awkward position giving way as he tried to sit up. At least he felt normal, the drugs cleared from his system and what-passed-for-food in his belly. Though he was still cold from the air conditioner, the sight of Collins’ smug face banished the chill with scalding rage. How dare this bastard torture them, cut up Emma, blind Nathan, keep them all here like animals!

Duke jumped to his feet, landing his fists on the glass on either side of Collins’ face with a snarl.

Collins tipped his head.

A pair of nurses, neither of them Riley, unlocked Duke’s cell and entered. They each carried a prod, electricity crackling off the ends of them, and Duke couldn’t help but back away. Some of his anger gave way to primordial fear. He didn’t want to be hurt, didn’t want to be electrocuted, didn’t want to go out there.

Collins grin widened.

The first nurse lunged with his prod.

Duke stumbled backwards, dodging the blow.

It was a feint. The second nurse rammed the tip into his ribs and electricity tore through his body. He smelled cooked meat, heard someone scream, realized that both sensations came from him. The floor rushed up to meet him and Duke went down hard, his skull bouncing off the floor. Blood bloomed in his mouth and he retched, the pain all-consuming, muscles spasming. In that moment, the nurses jerked him to his feet and strapped him to the gurney. The belts cut into his skin immediately, chafing when he tried to struggle free.

Across the hall, he could see them doing the same to Emma. At least they hadn’t shocked her and instead dragged her out by her thin wrists. Her diamond skin was on full display, rainbows arcing off her body. She didn’t fight, not really, but Duke hardly expected her too. She was just a little girl. Her panicked eyes met his pleadingly, but what could he do?

Though he could see partway into Nathan’s cell, he couldn’t see Nathan. Unable to feel or see, Nathan couldn’t really move, didn’t even know which direction he was facing in his cell. However, Nathan shouted at them, after them, “No! Leave them alone! Leave them alone! Take me instead! Please, take me instead of them!”

Duke didn’t know what turned his stomach more. The sound of Nathan’s cracked voice, pleading to be taken to torment instead? Or the wicked smile on Collins’ face as he ushered both Duke and Emma away without bothering to respond to Nathan? The door slammed shut after them and cut off Nathan’s voice.

Duke could only watch the blur of ceiling pass by as he was wheeled through an endless maze of white hallways. At some point, Emma’s gurney was peeled off and Collins followed her. The nurses continued pushing Duke until they reached what looked like an operating room. Duke’s skin crawled, nausea threatening to choke him. He couldn’t breathe. The strap on his ribs cut into his chest. He thrashed as much as he could to no avail.

However, the nurses had no interest in a mere human—as far as they knew. Duke had kept his Trouble close to the chest and neither Nathan nor Emma had apparently spilled his secret. They left him in the middle of the room, bound tightly under the floodlights, while they went to get coffee or whatever it was evil operations did in their down time.

Duke tested each restraint individually, trying to twist his wrist or ankle free. When that failed, he tried to twist his fingers to loosen something, but it was hopeless. He was trapped, pinned like an insect under glass. The band on his chest constricted further, tightening to the point that he couldn't draw breath. Gasping, shuddering, he helplessly jerked against the restraints. The overhead lights blinded him. Sweat dripped down his brow and his entire body broke out in shivers.

He tried to drag himself back under control. He couldn't have a panic attack now. He needed to keep his wits about him.

Duke tried to focus, blinking his streaming eyes open. He picked out a single item in the room. The phone mounted on the wall. Several of its colored lights were blinking in rhythm. Duke focused on them, breathing in steadily. He could smell antiseptic and blood. Panic swam back to the forefront. Was that his blood—or Nathan's? He breathed in shakily, forcing himself to pick out the scent of bleach and ignore the blood.

He stared at the phone, watching the green and red lights blink on an off. He inhaled the scent of bleach, wondering when the room had been cleaned. Recently, he decided, the scent was strong. Maybe they had cleaned it after torturing Nathan or Emma. Duke sucked in air, squinting at the phone harder. The lights hurt his eyes, watering, running hot trails down his cold face.

He picked out the smell again, counting backwards from ten. He breathed with each number, holding it and letting it out through his nose. Slowly, his vision widened and swam back into focus. The panic ebbed, loosening his chest. He forced himself to relax, sinking his head into the gurney. The metal was cold on his naked back. He could draw in breath now that the band on his throat wasn't pressing into his windpipe.

Duke slumped against the table, listening, breathing. All around him, the Initiative was quiet. He couldn't hear Nathan shouting or Emma screaming or the whine of the air conditioner. It was even a little warmer outside of his little cell. He focused on that, breathing in and out in time with the blinking lights on the phone. His heart stopped pounding in his ears and the edges of his vision lightened. He blinked the remnants of tears from his lashes.

Then, the door to the room reopened and the two nurses returned. They noisily pulled up seats in the corner and made themselves comfortable. The scent of fresh coffee wafted over to Duke, making his mouth water and his throat tighten. He would kill for a good cup of coffee, spiked, right about now. As with Nathan and Emma, he promised himself that he would have it just as soon as they got out and returned to the Gull.

The nurses chatted benignly for a while, complaining about their wives and hobbies, about the money they made, about the long hours and bad food. Duke couldn’t help but listen, hoping they would drop some precious kernel of information that would prove advantageous.

“Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. Did you hear?” one asked and sipped noisily.

The second nurse scoffed, rolling the empty cup between his palms. “What?”

“Major General Collins is going to operate on Hostile 2.”

“So?”

“Without anesthesia,” the first said with disgusting delight.

Duke's stomach turned and he fought against the urge to struggle anew. The restraints wouldn’t give.

The second nurse sat up eagerly. “No way. When?”

“I don't know, but I think he's eager to see if the Hostile really can't feel anything.”

“He has to feel something, right?”

“You'd think. I mean, if the Hostile can't even feel it,” the first continued, “then what's the point?”

The second crumbled the paper cup and then checked his watch. “Alright. It’s time.”

The first sighed. “I can’t believe we got saddled with the normal one. I heard Riley got to bring them meals all alone yesterday—lucky bitch. I would have shocked the hell out of all three of those Hostiles while I had them alone.”

“And that’s why Riley got to do it, not you. MG Collins wants them unspoiled for his experiments.”

The first nurse huffed out an indignant breath. “Come on, 2 can’t even feel it and 4’s got diamond skin. What’s the harm?”

“3 is normal.”

Duke swallowed, keeping his eyes closed, giving the illusion that he had passed out.

“Major General Collins is going to kill 3 anyway.”

“Did you hear him say that?”

“No, but it’s implied. What’s the use of a normal human here?”

“True.”

“Alright. We’re supposed to—” The first nurse slapped Duke’s face with an open palm “—wake up, Hostile 3.”

Duke peeled his eyes open, squinting at the masked figure above him, silhouetted by the bright operating lights.

“Here’s the deal,” the second said. “MG Collins blinded your friend and we know you’ve been talking to him. That’s going to stop.”

Duke’s heart began to pound again.

“Try not to move,” the second continued. “You’re just going to make it worse for yourself.”

From a side table, the first nurse scrubbed up with clean gloves and a fresh mask. He had a hideous eager grin beneath that mask that made Duke nauseous. Then, he procured some surgical thread, a long curves needle, and forceps. Duke already knew what was coming. His muscles bunched, strained, but to no avail. The second nurse gripped his head firmly, tangling his fingers in Duke’s long hair to hold him still.

The first nurse began to sew up Duke’s lips, passing the needle through the swell of Duke’s lower lip and jabbing it into his upper. He pulled the sutures tight, knotted them, and moved on. The pain was searing. Duke had been punched, stabbed, and nearly-shot over the years but this was the worst pain yet. It was methodical, steady, and went on forever. He squeezed his eyes shut, tears leaking beneath his lids and rolling down his face.

The nurse chuckled. “Hurts, huh? Just think of what your friend is going through.”

Duke was trying his hardest not to think of Nathan. If Nathan couldn’t see him or hear him, couldn’t feel him, how would Duke do anything to help keep Nathan steady? Or Emma for that matter? At least she would be able to see him across the cells, but Nathan… Duke flinched, a whimper crawling out of his throat, as the final suture was tugged tight. His lips burned. Blood dripped into his mouth where one stitch had broken through.

The nurses cleaned him up clinically, tapping stinging antiseptic over his wounded mouth. As with Emma and Nathan, they didn’t both with bandages. Leaving the stitches exposed, Duke momentarily entertained the idea of trying to remove them himself so he could talk to Nathan, but he knew that wasn’t an option. They would just drag him back here and next time, he might not be given an injury that he could heal from. They might just cut out his tongue.

The nurses bustled around Duke, unlocking the wheels of the gurney and pushing it out of the brightly-lit room. The dimness of the hallway compared to the floodlights made Duke’s eyes burn even through his closed lids. He focused on breathing in through his nose, but the smell of antiseptic and his own blood clogged his lungs. He wheezed, skin breaking out with cold sweat. They rumbled him back to his cell. As with Nathan, they simply unlocked the restraints and dumped him cruelly onto the cold linoleum. He yelped and the fresh sutures in his mouth immediately pulled. His vision went white with pain. By the time it cleared, he was locked in and he heard the door slam.

Emma was in her cell, arms wrapped around her legs. She had a big bruise on her face, her lower lip split, chin smeared with dried blood. When she saw him sit up, she gasped and began to quietly cry.

“Duke!” came Nathan’s voice, hoarse from screaming for who-knew-how-long. “Duke! Emma? Are you there? Please!”

Duke pressed his palms on the plexiglass.

Emma shook her head, tears rolling unchecked down her face. She didn’t make a sound.

“Duke? Emma?” Nathan insisted. “Please, answer me.”

This was Collins plan, Duke realized. To strip them of their comfort, their togetherness, their humanity, until there was nothing left.

To be able to hear the panic increasing in Nathan’s voice and unable to help was crueler than any physical torment. Duke blinked, wracking his brain as Nathan’s terror increased. Nathan began throwing himself at the door and the walls. At least that’s what it sounded like. Little whimpers and please kept breaking from him, whispers of Duke’s name and Emma’s. Duke couldn’t pull the stitches, couldn’t do more than make a pained grunting noise, couldn’t speak to Nathan. Listening to the thumps and whumps of Nathan’s body against the cell, he realized he had one thing left.

Duke rapped his knuckles on the plexiglass in a rhythm he knew Nathan would recognize. It was the opening bars to their high school anthem.

Slowly, the sound of Nathan’s panic ebbed. Duke could hear him breathing hard on the other side of the wall, panting with exertion and worry. “Duke?”

He knocked on the glass, once, with purpose.

“You’re there?”

Another knock.

Nathan let out a shuddering breath. “Thank god. I thought—”

Duke knocked twice, his best emphasis of ‘No.’

“Is Emma there too?”

One knock, yes.

Nathan breathed out shakily. “You can’t speak?”

One knock, yes. Duke wished he’d paid more attention to Morse code, wished he knew more than S.O.S. but he doubted Nathan knew any so it wouldn’t have mattered anyway.

“Did they hurt you?”

Duke hesitated. He didn’t really want Nathan to know that he was hurt. Nathan couldn’t do anything about it.

“Duke?” Nathan’s voice pinched. “Duke?”

Hastily, he knocked once.

“I’m sorry,” Nathan breathed out. “And Emma? Is she hurt?”

Duke glanced at her again.

She shook her head, the marks on her face catching the light, but it was just a bruise and small cut.

Duke knocked twice, no.

Silence stretched between them, consuming the relief Duke usually built with his voice right about now.

“Duke?” Nathan ventured.

Duke knocked. He was listening.

“I could… try to continue your story. Should I?”

Duke glanced at Emma.

She nodded, the ghost of a smile on her injured lips.

Duke knocked once, yes.

“Okay,” Nathan said softly. “Here goes.” He picked up with what Duke had told him the night before while Emma slept. He had been paying attention, regaling Emma and Duke with nearly every detail that Duke had thought of. He even added some of his own, giving the Vampire Slayer more funny lines to quip at monsters. It was different to listen to his own story, but Duke was grateful that Nathan was there, filling the silence, keeping the panic at bay.

‘Hurry up, Audrey,’ Duke thought. ‘Please. I don’t know how much more we can take.’

…

The next day, Collins came for Nathan with a wicked smile. Knowing what he had overhead, Duke’s stomach clenched. He wished there was something he could do, but even if he could think of a way to warn Nathan, what good would it do? Nathan couldn’t get away, couldn’t fight, couldn’t even feel those bastards cutting into and pawing around inside him. Maybe it would be better if Nathan didn’t know what was coming. He listened, heart in his throat, to the sounds of the nurses shocking Nathan and then wrestling him onto the gurney. They wheeled him away, that horrific device still locked over his eyes, blinded.

Collins loitered outside Duke’s cell, smirking.

Duke couldn’t shout all of the threats he wanted at Collins, couldn’t throw words of comfort at Nathan, couldn’t even swear. Instead, he gave Collins the finger.

Collins threw his head back and laughed, a twisted sound that echoed against the walls of the cellblock.

Nathan twitched against the restraints as though touched with a live wire. Then, they were both gone.

Duke sagged against the wall, feeling weak and useless. He wondered absently how he was going to eat with his lips sewn shut. Would they put an IV into him, feeding his fluids and nutrients directly into his veins along with any drugs they saw fit to fill him with? Would they let him quietly starve to death, unable to find the energy to even communicate with Nathan? Would Emma have to watch? He pinched the bridge of his nose, breathing deep, but he could still smell only his own blood. He shivered in the cold.

“Duke?” came Emma’s voice, small and thin.

He looked over at her, nodding to show that he was listening.

“Are you okay?”

He made a so-so motions with his hand and then pointed to his stitched-up mouth.

Emma winced in sympathy and then ventured in a cracked voice, “I heard… they said they were going to cut Nathan up without painkillers. They were going to cut him up while he was awake and alive.” Hysteria touched her, making her eyes wide and her speech frantic. “Are they—will they do that to us too?”

Duke didn’t have an answer. He knocked to get her attention and then carefully, backwards so she could see it, wrote out Audrey’s name in the plexiglass.

“Do you think she’s still coming for us?” Emma whispered.

Duke nodded hugely, his assurance coming through in the large motion.

“Do you think she’ll find us before…?” Emma trailed off, tears dripping down her face.

Duke hesitated a beat too long, his mouth aching.

Emma started to cry in earnest, her head bowed into her hands.

No amount of knocking could get her to look back up at him. Duke slumped against the wall again, shivering. His mouth was a point of fire, burning with pain, making him sweat. He kept his eyes focused on the little stretch of hallway, waiting for Collins and Nathan to come back. He had given up praying years ago, but he found himself wanting to pray now. There was no harm, he told himself. Just because his prayers had never been answered before, didn’t mean they would be ignored now. After all, he wasn’t worried about only himself. He was worried about Nathan and Emma. He would give up anything just to get the two of them out of here.

What hurt the most was knowing that Nathan probably wished for the same thing.

Duke exhaled shakily, closing his eyes, listening for the telltale crash of the door. He listened to the air conditioner, to Emma crying, to the thump of the blood in his ears. His stomach was empty, growling, and he worried again about starving. He tried to rest, to expend as little energy as possible, just in case.

What felt like an eternity later, the door opened and the gurney squeaked in.

Duke leaped to his feet, pressing against the glass, desperate to see Nathan, to reassure himself. The sight boiled his bones.

Nathan lay strapped to the gurney. There was a huge wound running the length of his sternum, stitched finely to keep his organs from spilling out. Duke would never know what exactly they had done to Nathan, if they had vivisected him while he was conscious, listening to the wet squelch of his organs being moved. If they had just cut him and pretended. Nathan would never really know either, blinded and unable to feel his own body. He looked in a daze, wilted into the table, his face pale and shining with sweat.

The nurses rolled him into his cell and eased him down, mindful of the massive wound on his chest.

Duke waited until they were gone before he started knocking in a frenzy, tap-tapping mindlessly on the plexiglass. He could hear the words beating out of his fingers, renditions and mantras of Nathan’s name and empty assurances that he would be okay. From the corner of his eye, he saw Emma shift. She came closer to her own door, pressing her face close in an attempt to see Nathan. Duke looked at her, but she shook her head. She couldn’t see either.

Finally, finally, Nathan made a sound. “Duke,” he mumbled. “I’m ok’y.”

Duke tapped on the glass, nearly pounding.

“Couldn’t feel it,” Nathan slurred. “Couldn’t see it.”

Emma choked on a little sound.

“Emma?” Nathan asked.

Hesitantly, she tapped too. The pitch and direction were different from Duke’s raps.

“Good, good,” he murmured. “You’re both okay.”

Duke knocked once.

Emma followed suit.

“Emma, did they hurt you like Duke?”

She knocked twice.

“Good,” Nathan breathed out. “Thank god.”

Duke knocked three times, urgently.

“I’m okay,” Nathan said again. “I couldn’t feel it.”

Duke wanted desperately to talk, to take Nathan’s mind off the memories that were surely assailing him, to distract them all with another story. However, the stitches in his mouth pulled painfully when he tried to speak out of habit. He winced and knocked on the glass, beating out a steady sound. It wasn’t even close to music, but it was something.

Nathan chuckled wryly. “I know you’re there, Duke. Thank you.”

Duke let the beat fade out, resting his palm on the plexiglass.

Emma backed into the corner, resting her cheek on her bent knees. Duke folded himself against the wall his cell shared with Nathan, wishing he could do something to help. Nathan was silent on the other side of the wall, breathing raspily. The air conditioner hummed, continuing to pump out frigid air. Silence stretched across the cellblock.

XXX

Questions, comments, concerns? 


	4. Fight

I decided not to write much from Audrey's perspective because I didn't want to get into how an FBI agent would even being to track down a secret government organization that does testing on Troubled people and other things that go bump in the night. However, know that she's on the outside tearing the world up in search of her boys.

XXX

Duke couldn’t tell if it was day or night. He honestly had no idea how long they had been trapped in the Initiative’s cells. It could have been hours or days. It felt like months. The constant bright lights and air conditioning made it impossible to tell what time it was. Meals were brought at such irregular intervals and the nurses were always different so he couldn’t tell shifts either. He hadn’t seen Riley again. Even if he were to keep track by how often Emma or Nathan were taken away for experiments, he still had no idea how much time had passed.

Duke had missed one meal. Having his lips sewn shut prevented both speaking and eating. So, they were going to let him starve to death, right in front of Emma, unable to speak to Nathan. Duke wondered how many meals it would take for him to rip out the stitches, desperate to eat even the slop they brought. He figured they would sew his mouth right back up if he did so. He tried to hold on, to wait for Audrey to come, to wait for some opportunity to arise. He held onto the hope that either would happen. He had to keep that match-flame alive, kindled between them.

He had no idea if it was day or night, weeks or years, too late or just in time.

The sounds of a fight carried through the closed doors outside their cells.

Emma flinched into the corner. Nathan got to his feet, but no longer bothered to bang on the glass. Duke remained seated where he was, peering around the hallway. There seemed little else they could do.

Then, with a cannon-like bang, the doors crashed open. There was no rumble of a gurney, no squeak of sterilized non-slip shoes, no mocking laugh and heavy footsteps from Collins. There were many footsteps in fact—some light and quick, others heavy, some in between. Was this rotten place under attack, burning to the ground with them in it? Had the government decided to move them, weaponize them? Had they come for Nathan and Emma, leaving Duke behind like so much garbage?

Duke didn’t know what to expect when they came into view. He saw a flash of blond hair, restrained in a bun, and a bulletproof vest on over casual slacks and comfortable shoes.

It was Audrey.

Duke’s breath rushed out of him. Relief so potent that his limbs went weak and shaky overwhelmed him. He pressed his palm to the plexiglass, trying to smile and wincing instead.

“Oh god,” Audrey said and her voice was like music. “I’m here, I’m here.” She unlocked the cell, rushing in and putting her hands on Duke’s shoulders. Her skin was warm, so warm that it almost burned. He had been cold for so long. He almost sobbed. “Duke,” she said urgently.

Across the hall, Dwight unlocked Emma’s cell and rushed to her. He pulled off his windbreaker, wrapping it around her little body. She crumbled into him.

“Nathan,” Audrey said to Duke. “Where’s Nathan?”

“Here, Audrey,” Nathan called desperately. “I’m here. Duke and Emma, are they okay?”

“They’re okay!” Audrey gently loosened Duke’s grip. “Wait, wait. I’m going to get Nathan, okay. I’ll be right back.”

Duke nodded, just as desperate to see Nathan as she was. He tried to stand but his legs were too weak.

Dwight held Emma to his chest with one arm. She looked tiny against him, her diamond skin flickering in and out like armor.

Other officers from Haven piled into the hallway. Duke soon found himself swathed in a scratchy rescue blanket, but he clutched it around himself regardless. Audrey returned to him with Nathan held tight to her side. The hideous metal blinder was still strapped to Nathan’s face and his cut skin had started to heal around it. Hopefully it could be removed without damaging his vision. Audrey sank to her knees with Nathan, taking Duke’s outstretched hand. Stan put a blanket around Nathan’s body as well, hiding the many wounds on his torso.

“I’m here,” Audrey said to them. “Duke’s here, Nathan. Duke’s right here.”

“Duke,” Nathan breathed.

Duke took Nathan’s shaking hand and squeezed, hoping Nathan would be able to identify the pressure if nothing else.

Nathan rasped a shuddering breath.

Audrey’s fingers flit around the metal blindfold, around the stitches on Duke’s mouth, over both of them in turn. She looked about to cry or scream or murder someone, possibly all three.

Duke wanted to ask her about Collins. Was that bastard dead?

“Let’s get them out of here,” Dwight said. He didn’t let go of Emma and she clung to him, arms around his neck.

Audrey nodded briskly.

Stan came with two wheelchairs, one folded up under his arm while he pushed the other. Audrey guided Nathan to sit first, tucking another blanket around his legs. Then, she and Stan brought Duke to his feet and settled him into the second. She wrapped more blankets over him, combing his lank hair back from his face with a wan smile.

“You’re okay,” she said. “I’m here. I’ve got you. I found you. I finally found you.”

Eyes burning, Duke turned his face into her palm.

Audrey turned to Nathan, catching his wildly outstretched hand. “I’m here. I’ve got you. I’ve got you. You’re safe now.”

Nathan murmured, “Audrey.”

“I’m here,” she said. “It’s me. You can feel me, Nathan. It’s me.”

He nodded jerkily and said again, “Duke?”

Duke made a muffled noise. The pain was nothing now.

“Let's go,” Dwight said. He led them, striding ahead, ignoring the wheelchair proffered for Emma.

Stan pushed Duke’s wheelchair while another officer pushed Nathan’s. Audrey walked between them, holding Nathan’s hand, smiling at Duke whenever he sought her eyes. The procession was mostly gravely silent, winding back through the corridors and operating rooms of the Initiative. There was little blood here and there, but Duke didn’t see any bodies. He wasn’t sure if he was happy or saddened by that knowledge. He didn’t see Collins either. They rode an elevator up an impossible number of floors. When the doors peeled open, Duke found that they were in an ordinary-looking waiting room. It was the sort of thing that wouldn’t be out of place in any office building.

Outside, the sun was shining gloriously on Nathan’s blue Bronco, a fleet of FBI vehicles, and several of Haven’s police cruisers. Dwight climbed into the ambulance with Emma.

Audrey refused to let them be separated, even for the ambulance ride. She had Nathan loaded onto the stretcher despite his half-hearted protests that he didn’t feel anything. She jockeyed Duke into the seat beside her and rode the whole way to the hospital with both their hands clasped in hers. With her skin in the mix, Duke imagined that Nathan could feel it when he squeezed his fingers.

Just like that, in a matter of minutes, the Initiative was behind them. Duke had a thousand and one questions—How had Audrey found them, how had she gotten them out, where was Collins, where was Hostile 1, what about Riley, what was to stop this happening again? But they all slipped away when Audrey put her arm around his back and pulled him close. He rested against her, his head pillowed in the curve of her neck and shoulder. With Nathan’s skin cool against his own and Audrey’s body burning like a fire at his side, Duke fell asleep quickly.

…

When Duke woke, he was in another blindingly white room.

For a moment, he thought it had all been a nightmare—a dream in which Audrey came to rescue them that was ripped away upon waking. He jolted up, heart in his throat, and felt a twinge in the back of his hand. He looked down at the IV uncomprehendingly and then around at the monitors. There was a spray of colored carnations on the end table, a television was droning quietly about sea life, and there was an open window with a view of the distant harbor.

At his bedside, Audrey was slumped in a borrowed chair with a blanket drawn over her shoulders. In the buttery morning light, the dark circles under her eyes and the new lines around her mouth were apparent. She had worried about them the entire time. Certainly ripping apart the world in her search and she had found them, not that there had ever been a doubt in Duke’s mind.

Behind her, Nathan was sitting up against a mountain of pillows. He looked tired and drawn, his skin like bleached paper stretched over his bones, but the blindfold had been removed somehow. Though there were scars and fresh cuts on his face, Duke didn’t think he had ever been so happy to see those baby-blues.

When Nathan saw that he was awake, he said gently, “It’s okay. It was real. We’re safe.”

Duke almost spoke, but caught himself before the stitches pulled his lips.

Nathan shook his head. “They’re gone. You’re okay.”

Duke lifted a shaking hand to his mouth, gingerly exploring his skin. The stitches were indeed gone. He wet his lips, wincing at the rough chapped skin. He tried to speak, but his voice came out a croak. Glancing at the vase, he saw that a plastic water bottle had been left at his bedside. He picked it up and took a sip, forcing himself not to gulp. Soothed, he cleared his throat and managed, “Nathan.”

A little smile pulled at Nathan’s mouth. “Hey Duke.”

“Emma?” Duke croaked.

Nathan tipped his chin towards the closed door to their room. “Across the hall,” he said. “Dwight is with her.”

“She’s okay?”

“Yeah,” Nathan told him. “She has a few cuts and bruises, but her diamond skin protected her from the worst of it.”

Duke thought of Nathan's twisted ankle in the forest, the bullet that he had taken, the first blow that had started all of this. He thought of Nathan’s slashed chest, of the conversations he had overhead, of the metal blindfold wrapped around his skull. “And you?”

Nathan shrugged one shoulder. “Can’t feel any of it. The doc says I’ll heal fine.”

“And you can see?” Duke asked, needing confirmation even though he could see that the blindfold was gone and Nathan was looking right at him.

Nathan nodded in understanding. “20-20 again,” he confirmed.

Duke let out a breath he didn’t realize he had been holding. “Thank god.”

“It was scary,” Nathan confessed, “scarier when I couldn’t hear you anymore. I didn’t know what happened or why you couldn’t talk to me. I didn’t know they’d do that to you, those bastards.”

The vehemence in Nathan’s voice surprised Duke. He twisted the thick coverlet in his hands, looking down at the bruise spreading beneath the point of the IV. Duke thought about picking at it but restrained himself. He needed the fluids and nutrients more than he needed to get out. He was happy to stay right here, where he could see Nathan, where he could hear Audrey’s little sleeping breaths, where he knew Emma was safe.

Audrey blinked awake. There was a slice of fear on her face, as though she thought finding them was just a dream too. She looked first at Nathan, then snapped her head around to see Duke. It took a few seconds for her panic to dissipate, allowing her to smile warmly at them. “Hey,” she greeted. “Good morning. How do you feel?”

“Great,” Duke said. He grinned and winced at the pull in his mouth. Lots of little scabs bothered him. “How about you?”

“Wonderful,” Audrey said. She tipped out of the chair with a groan and came to Duke’s side. She fluffed the pillows behind his back and adjusted the bed to a more comfortable seated position. Her hands lingered on him, warm and gentle. “Now that I know my boys are safe.”

Duke’s heart swelled at the thought.

She turned to Nathan, fluffing his pillows and smoothing his blankets in an absent kind of way. She caught his hand and squeezed it gently before lifting a hand to run along the lingering wound on his cheekbone where the metal blindfold had pressed deeply.

Nathan leaned into her touch, his eyes fluttering closed.

Duke watched them silently, torn between wishing Audrey would do that to him and wanting to touch Nathan himself.

There was a light rap on the threshold and then the door opened. The doctor that entered looked like she was having the worst night ever. Her hair was wild, her eyes were red-rimmed and bloodshot, and her hands shook slightly from too much caffeine, but it had been that kind of night. Hopefully her shift would be over soon.

“Morning,” she greeted and flipped through the chart at the foot of Duke’s bed and then Nathan's. “Well, after what you’ve been through, I’m sure you’d like to get home. I can discharge both of you so long at you have someone at home waiting for you.”

Duke’s stomach twisted.

“They do,” Audrey assured the doctor. “I’ll be taking them both home with me.”

“Both?” Nathan repeated.

She flashed him a smile. “I’m not letting the two of you out of my sight for at least a week.”

Duke usually hated being fussed over, but that sounded wonderful. He didn’t realize he had spoken aloud until Audrey slid her hand over his and squeezed, her eyes soft and sad.

Nurses came to free them from the nest of wires and IVs. Audrey had someone stop by Nathan’s house and Duke’s boat to get them a change of clothes. After so long naked and freezing, it felt strange to pull on his preferred layers. Nathan tugged on his jeans and looked like he was thinking the same thing. As he buttoned the shirt over his chest, Duke glimpsed the neat black stitches that dotted him at regular intervals. His breath caught, shuddering, in his lungs.

“I’m okay,” Nathan assured him. “I didn’t even feel it.”

Audrey waited outside the room for them and smiled sadly when they emerged to meet her. She ushered them outside to Nathan’s Bronco, loaded them up, and started to drive to the Gull.

“Please don’t tell me you plan to put us all up in that broom cupboard I call an apartment,” Duke said with a whine.

“Where would you rather be put up?” Audrey asked. “Nathan only has one tiny bed in his house.”

Duke smiled. “I have a California king-sized bed on the Rouge,” he said cheerfully.

“That sounds good,” Nathan said.

Audrey hummed a moment before agreeing. She pulled into the Grey Gull’s deserted parking lot and darted upstairs to fetch some clothes. Duke and Nathan stood together on the porch, looking at the familiar dim interior. The tables were clean and the smell of food lingered. Tracy had kept the Gull running while Duke was gone and for that he was grateful. It would be nice to get back to normal as soon as possible.

Nathan peeked in the window at the dark interior. “That offer for food still stand?”

“You bet,” Duke said. He leaned heavily on the railing. “Tomorrow, just as soon as I feel up to cooking.”

Nathan glanced at Duke, taking in his shaking legs, and came to slot himself against Duke’s side.

Duke flashed him a sheepish smile.

Audrey clattered back down the stairs, her shoulder bag packed with the essentials. “Ready?”

“Oh, hell yes,” Duke said with relief.

They made tracks back to the Bronco and Audrey drove them to the slip where the Cape Rouge was docked and waiting. Audrey parked the Bronco and hopped nimbly down. The motion spoke of familiarity, practice that Duke couldn’t remember her having before they had been kidnapped by the Initiative. Nathan noticed too, smiling at her from the corner of his mouth.

“You look like you’ve made up with the Bronco,” Nathan remarked.

“Duke’s Rover too,” Audrey said as Duke labored down from the backseat. “I drove them both while you were—” Her voice fragmented. “It made me feel close to you. I missed you both so much. I was so worried.”

Nathan wordlessly drew her against his chest and she put her arms around him, burying her face against the flannel where it was warmed by his body. Duke watched awkwardly for a moment, uncertain if he should walk away and give them their moment or stay close. He didn’t want to go, didn’t want to put any space between them, didn’t want to be apart from Audrey either. Nathan cracked open his blue eyes, resting his cheek against Audrey’s hair, and saw Duke’s expression. Wordlessly, he stretched out his arm, beckoning Duke closer.

Duke nearly fell into the proffered embrace, burrowing into Nathan’s side and putting his arms around both of them. He squeezed Audrey tight and Nathan gently, mindful of the injuries on Nathan even if he couldn’t feel them. Nathan looped his arm around Duke’s back, breathing out in a great rush of relief. He and Duke were nearly cheek-to-cheek, but Nathan didn’t seem bothered. Duke let their skin touch, soaking up the reassurance that came with Nathan’s warm living body. He could feel the ridge of broken skin where the blindfold had pressed and shuddered.

Audrey assumed it was the cold wind, blowing in off the sea, that made him shiver. She broke the embrace, surreptitiously wiping her wet eyes. “Let’s get inside.”

Duke nodded and peeled away from Nathan. He followed Audrey up the gangplank and stepped down onto the deck. The easy motion of the ocean, the ebb and flow of the tides, was such a part of his life, a part of his freedom. He had missed it greatly. However, when his feet hit the deck, he stumbled and caught himself a nearby crate.

Audrey steadied Nathan, their hands clasped, as he stepped down. “You okay, Duke?” she asked.

He nodded, throat dry as he found his balance. “How long were we gone?”

Guilt marred Audrey’s expression. “I was looking for you,” she said immediately. “I looked everywhere. I never stopped.”

Nathan touched her shoulder, his hand light and hesitant.

She clammed up, eyes shining with tears.

“Audrey,” Duke said gently. “I—I’m not blaming you. I know you were looking for us. I’m just—just curious.”

She sucked in a steadying breath.

Nathan patted her back, his eyes sharp. He must have already known, Duke realized. Nathan had probably looked at a calendar or maybe he had been able to sense the passage of time in that hellhole. Nathan already knew the answer, had already come to grips with it, and looked prepared to catch either Duke or Audrey if they stumbled.

Duke swallowed. “Audrey, please, just tell me?”

She let her breath out slowly, looking between Nathan and Duke. “Five weeks,” she said lowly.

The wind felt punched out of Duke’s lungs. All at once, it felt like an impossible amount of time. He almost opened his mouth to protest. They couldn’t possibly have been trapped in the Initiative that long, right? He couldn’t remember eating that many terrible meals. He couldn’t remember the wounds on Nathan’s body healing. It hadn’t been that long—it couldn’t have been that long. Yet in the next heartbeat, such a time didn’t seem like enough. It felt like years that they had been trapped in that frigid hellhole.

“Five weeks?” he repeated.

Nathan’s expression smoothed with understanding.

A gust of wind snapped off the sea. It had been mid-summer when they chased Emma through the woods, trying to protect her from her father, and now the breeze blowing in was downright chilly. Fall was upon them. Duke shivered again, even though it was nothing compared to the constant barrage of air conditioning on his naked body.

“R-really?” he ventured.

Audrey nodded. “I’m sorry. I tried to find you but—”

Duke closed the space between them, staggering on the deck, and wrapped his arms tight around Audrey.

She hugged him fiercely. “I’m sorry,” she whispered again.

“It’s not your fault,” Duke told her. “I know you were looking. I knew you’d find us.”

Nathan put his arms around both of them again, shielding them from the wind with his unfeeling body. His breath was warm, puffing on the top of Duke’s bowed head. Audrey dug her fingers into Nathan’s shirt, pulling him closer, coiling around them desperately. The Rouge rocked beneath them gently.

“Alright,” Duke interrupted. “This is getting silly. We can’t make it from one location to another without having a hug-fest?”

Audrey chuckled, but it was watery. “I missed you,” she said.

“We missed you too,” Nathan assured her.

Duke hunted his spare key out and let them all inside. The Rouge was dim and smelled a little stale, but it was clean. Someone had dusted, cleaned the dishes he knew he had left in the sink, and presumably disposed of everything perishable in his fridge. Duke turned on a lamp, basking in the golden glow of his home. There was a pillow and blanket spread on the couch as though someone had been squatting. Duke would have been alarmed if not for the lingering scent of Audrey’s perfume in the still air. He crossed the room to fiddle with the thermostat and cracked a window to circulate the air.

“I slept here sometimes,” Audrey said in a small voice. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Not at all,” Duke said. He opened the fridge, peering inside out of habit, but there were only non-perishables and small snacks inside. “Thanks for keeping up on the place.”

Audrey glanced at Nathan shyly. “I slept at your house, too, on the couch.”

Nathan smiled at her and reached out as though to touch her face, but aborted the movement. “You could have slept in my bed. I don’t mind.”

Audrey caught his hand and pressed her cheek into his palm, breathing shakily against the thin skin of his wrist.

Nathan curled his fingertips through her hair, warm and soft, the way he imagined sunshine would feel.

Duke closed the fridge. “I don’t know about you, Nate, but I am dying for a real shower.”

Nathan shrugged. “Doesn’t make a difference to me. I can’t feel the water anyway.”

“Shit,” Duke swore. “Sorry. I didn’t even think.”

“Get cleaned up,” Nathan said. He let go of Audrey reluctantly and plopped down on the couch, groaning even if he didn’t get any relief from the cushions. “We’ll be here. You can make it up to me with food.”

Duke grinned. “Done. I should have something good stashed somewhere.”

Audrey watched Duke go and gingerly sat beside Nathan, curling her feet underneath her after she had toed off her shoes. She hesitated a moment, uncertain, as Nathan thumbed through the channels on the television. Finally, she settled against him, her body a current of electricity against his side. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she drew the blanket over both of them. He couldn’t tell if it was soft, but it smelled like her and he was grateful for that. Nathan found a cooking channel, closed his eyes, and fell asleep too quickly.

Duke returned twenty minutes later, feeling worlds closer to human for washing the grit and phantoms off his skin. He was going to offer to order food in until he could replenish his cabinets, but he came around the corner to find Nathan passed out against Audrey. She was drawing her fingers slowly through his short hair, a look on her face like she expected him to disappear at any moment.

“Hey,” Duke said softly.

Audrey snapped her head up and smiled at him thinly. “Hey Duke.”

“You okay?”

“Fine,” she assured him.

Duke came to sit beside her, his weight sinking the cushion so that she slid into him. Her body was warm like a brand all along his side and she smelled like freesia blossoms. “Are you sure?” he asked quietly. “Because you look like you’re waiting for the end of the world.”

Audrey untangled the fingers of one hand from Nathan’s hair, slid them between Duke’s, and squeezed. “It’s just… I’ve had this dream before.”

Duke leaned his shoulder into hers, pressing his weight against her. “It’s not a dream.”

“How do you know?” Audrey whispered. She traced her fingers along the new scars on Nathan’s sleeping face.

In his sleep, Nathan’s lips twitched into a smile. He pressed into her touch, catlike.

Duke watched the exchange quietly. Part of him wanted to say, ‘If this was my dream, Nathan wouldn’t be here. It’d be just you and me.’

But he no longer wanted to be apart from Nathan. He had spent so much time worrying about him while they were being tortured, trying to think of tiny things to keep them together, trying to keep their hearts and minds intact. He had always liked Nathan, pulling his pigtails so to speak during their youth, but their lives had diverged. Duke was a petty crook gone straight and Nathan was the son of the police chief, Duke was a Crocker and Nathan was in the Guard, Duke had no one and Nathan had Audrey.

Somewhere along the lines, Duke realized as Audrey stroked her thumb over his knuckles, at least one of those things had changed.

“If it was a dream,” Duke said slowly.

Audrey searched his face.

“Then I’d be kissing you,” he admitted.

Audrey chuckled and leaned forward as though to make that dream come true.

Duke continued, eyes straying to Nathan’s face, “Then, I’d be kissing him.”

Audrey breathed in sharply. Her fingers tightened around Duke’s. She looked about to speak, like there were a thousand things she wanted to say, but Duke didn’t want to listen. He reached over her, grasped Nathan’s shoulder, and gave a little shake. Pressed against Audrey’s legs, Nathan had no trouble feeling the world shift. Blearily, he opened his eyes and sat up.

“Duke?”

“I know you can’t feel it, but you’re going to get a hell of a crick in your neck. Come on, my bed is big enough for all three of us.”

Audrey watched with surprise and fondness as Nathan nodded and let Duke drag him to his feet. Then, the two of them stood there, staring at her expectantly. Audrey barked a little laugh, clambered to her feet, and pressed a quick kiss to Nathan’s lips. It was chaste, a mere peck, but Nathan was drawn after her like a bit of flotsam caught in the tide, his face a mask of bliss. Duke started to balk, but Audrey caught his face between her palms. She pressed a kiss to his lips too, letting it linger just a little bit longer. Duke started to clutch at her, but she danced away.

“Some dreams do come true,” she said cryptically.

Nathan glanced at Duke, one eyebrow quirked. “What dreams?”

Duke flushed. “The one I have of collapsing into my nice warm bed,” he lied.

Nathan could have called him on it, but instead chose to shake his head and follow Audrey into Duke’s cabin. His socked feet made little sound on the boards.

Duke made sure the door was locked, flicked off the lamp, and followed them. Audrey had shed her jeans and jacket, curling into Duke’s bed in comfy flannel pajamas. She patted the spaces on either side of her. Duke lingered in the threshold a moment, captivated by the sight. Then, he sprang into action, pulling some clean pajamas from his dresser. Nathan stripped off his jeans and changed into the pants that Duke offered. Then, without complaint, he climbed into Duke’s bed and curled around Audrey.

Duke slipped in on the other side of her and she pulled him close. With her back to Nathan’s front and her small form snuggled down, Duke and Nathan were almost nose to nose. Nathan relaxed first, pressing his forehead to Duke’s, their breath mingling as the tension soaked from his muscles. Duke ran his palm along Audrey’s bare arm, fingertips just barely touching Nathan’s ribs. Nathan’s skin was warm through his shirt and his chest rose and fell with steady breaths. Duke almost thought he was asleep and was almost there himself when Nathan spoke.

“Duke?”

“Hmm?” Duke murmured.

“I haven’t heard any more of your story.”

Audrey perked up a little between them, bending her neck to peer up at them. “Story?”

Duke laughed, unable to resist the urge to brush her pale hair out of her face. “Yeah,” he said. “It’s just something I made up. Something about a blonde girl who goes into a dark alley and kicks the monster’s ass.”

Nathan bumped his forehead into Duke’s. “It was a great story.”

“Emma will be upset if we finish it without her,” Duke said. “Besides, it feels like your story now. You’d been telling it to us ever since those bastards sewed my lips shut.”

Nathan sobered. “I liked it better when you told it.”

Duke sighed, his breath stirring between them.

“Will you start from the beginning?” Audrey asked. “I’d like to hear it.”

“I wouldn’t mind hearing it again either,” Nathan confessed. “It’s been a long time. I’ve missed your voice.”

Duke’s cheeks warmed and he shifted down against the pillows. “Alright, alright, twist my arm.”

Nathan smiled.

Audrey beamed up at them, her face a little picture of delight.

Duke squeezed her closer, letting Nathan put his arms around both of them. Nathan absently stroked Duke’s back with his fingers, the motion soothing if nothing else. Duke’s voice felt rough and unused as he started speaking, opening the tale he had started on a whim. He told Audrey about the pretty blonde Vampire Slayer, about her fight with the Master, about her first boyfriend turning out to be an asshole, about her prom and graduation, and everything in between. He told Audrey everything and it felt like a knot was working loose in his chest. He could breathe for the first time since they had been taken.

XXX

Questions, comments, concerns? 


	5. Home

Ah, the final chapter. Thanks for sticking through the hard stuff with me everyone. It was worth it for the happy ending that's coming.

XXX

When Duke woke in the morning, Audrey’s hair was in his mouth. She was sprawled atop both of them, arms and legs flung wildly, her fingers twisted in Duke’s long hair and Nathan’s shirt, pulling it enough to expose a stitched injury in his shoulder. Duke’s arm was numb where it was pinned underneath her, tingling madly now that he was aware of it. With a stifled groan, he freed his other hand from the blankets and began trying to work her hand out of his hair.

“Don’t bother,” came Nathan’s voice, startling Duke.

“Don’t bother what?” Duke asked.

“Trying to get free,” Nathan said. He opened his eyes, blinking at Duke in the early morning light. “She’s got a death grip.”

Duke sighed, sinking into the mattress, wiggling his fingers under Audrey’s back. “You’re lucky you can’t feel it, because my arm is totally numb.”

Nathan smiled wryly.

“What now?” Duke asked the ceiling. He could feel the Rouge rocking them steadily, comforting them wordlessly. Gods, he had missed this old boat.

“Well, I recall someone promising pancakes if we survived.”

“You are so hung up on that food thing,” Duke remarked.

More seriously, Nathan explained, “You could at least feel the shower when you got cleaned up yesterday. I can’t do that. I can still taste that slop they gave us. Eating some of your cooking is the equivalent of my shower.”

Duke tilted his head, looking at Nathan over Audrey’s strewn form. “Okay,” he agreed, heart twisting at Nathan's honesty. “First thing, we’ll go get breakfast at the Gull. I have to start making a chocolate cake for Emma.”

Nathan shifted, rolling slightly to face Duke and Audrey. He rested his palm on Audrey’s stomach, stroking a gentle path over the strip of exposed skin above her pajama bottoms. Duke watched the caress, part-jealous and part-envious. After a moment, Audrey stirred, batting away Nathan’s ticklish touch. She blinked at Duke, then smiled, and all was right with the world.

…

Dwight brought Emma to the Grey Gull at Duke’s behest. While the three of them were imprisoned by the Initiative, Dwight had found her father and brought him into custody. There was a lot of red tape to navigate before that man went to prison and her aunt took custody of her, but she was safe for now. Dwight would make certain of it. She clung to his hand, shivering in the autumn chill, looking around like a prey animal for Duke or Nathan. It would have been sweet if it wasn’t so sad. Emma had sat up crying with Claire most of the previous day, telling them what had happened with her father and then with the Initiative.

Dwight kept a firm grip on her hand as he let them into the Gull. The restaurant was lit lowly, twinkling fairy lights winding around the rafters, floor lamps throwing off a comforting glow, and candles lit on most of the tables. Nathan and Audrey were seated at a large table in the middle of the room with mugs of coffee and a few dirty plates. Audrey smiled at Dwight and got up to greet him, hugging him briefly.

Emma smiled when she saw Nathan, shuffling her feet shyly.

“Emma,” Nathan said.

That was all it took. She bolted for him, leaping into his arms with so much force that she nearly bowled him over. It made sense, since all she had been able to hear was his voice, that hearing it again would break her. She locked her arms around Nathan, sobbing into his shirt. Nathan cradled her to him, supporting her weight, shushing her, walking around the Gull in short paths to soothe her. It was fortunate that he couldn’t feel any of his lingering injuries or her tight embrace would have hurt him.

Dwight came to sit with Audrey, letting them have their moment. “Is everything okay?” he asked.

“As okay as I think it possibly can be right now,” Audrey told him. She palmed her mug and took a sip without appearing to taste it. Her haunted eyes followed Nathan’s back as he walked around. “Duke and Nathan are going to need time.”

“And you?” Dwight asked, watching her watch everything else.

“It feels like a dream. It feels like I’m going to wake up at any second and they’ll still be gone,” Audrey sighed. At his look, she held up a hand for silence. “I know, I already have an appointment to see Claire.”

Dwight poured a mug for himself, stirring in cream noisily. “Where’s Duke?”

“In the kitchen,” Audrey said. “Apparently he promised Emma something.”

“Something?” Dwight asked.

Audrey rolled her shoulders. “He wouldn’t tell me, said I’d have to wait and see, and Nathan looked smug about it.”

As though summoned by the sound of his name, Duke busted out of the kitchen and flourished a large covered dish. “Emma!” he said cheerfully.

“Duke!” she squealed.

Despite how tightly she had been clinging to Nathan, she squirmed freely so hastily that he almost dropped her and took off towards Duke. Duke’s eyes went wide and he scrambled to set aside his treat, opening his arms just in time to catch her as she flung herself at him with equal fervor. She tightened her little arms around his torso, squeezing so hard that she stole his breath. Duke held her back, unwilling to give in to embarrassment at Nathan’s grin and Audrey’s eyes burning into his back. He was grateful that Emma was okay, grateful that he could finally touch her, could finally comfort her. He felt the same way about Nathan.

“You’re okay!” Emma said delightedly. She pulled her face out of his chest, eyes red-rimmed and lips bitten with nerves, but her smile was genuine. “I’m so glad.”

Duke squeezed her, lifting her feet off the floor. “I’m okay,” he assured her. “I’m okay.”

“You can talk again,” she murmured. She pressed her face into his shoulder, shivering. “And Nathan can see.”

“Yes,” Duke assured her. “We’re all okay.”

“Because Audrey came for us,” Emma said. Her little cold fingers dug into Duke’s back and he made a mental note to make sure she hadn’t broken Nathan’s skin without him knowing. Her fear was palpable, painful, overwhelming.

Duke rubbed her back, his palm big and warm on her small body. “Just like I said she would,” he continued.

Emma gazed at him and her blue eyes filled with tears. Wordlessly, she burrowed into him and sniffled hard. Duke felt her body jerk against him, tiny wracking sobs that made her feel like she was going to break apart. Duke held her tightly, shooting a helpless look at Nathan. Smiling sadly and knowingly, Nathan came closer. He put his arms around both of them, crushing Emma tight between them until her sobs quieted. Finally, she squirmed her smudged face out of Duke’s shirt.

“You’re squishing me,” she said with a small laugh.

“Sorry,” Nathan said and gave them some space. “I’m just happy you’re okay.”

“Me too,” Duke assured her, smoothing down her rumpled blonde hair. “And, because I’m a man of my word,” he turned towards the covered dish and uncovered the most sumptuous chocolate cake Nathan had ever seen, “Viola! Just for you!”

Emma’s eyes almost rolled out of her head. “For me?”

“Of course, but if you feel like sharing, I’ll make you another.”

Emma nodded, her round eyes glued to the cake.

Nathan followed Duke and Emma back to the big table where Audrey and Dwight were waiting. He pulled out a seat for Emma and slid in beside her while Duke bustled around the table, checking on everyone like a dutiful host. Then, he cut the cake almost in half and heaped the massive slice on Emma’s plate.

“Want ice cream?” Duke offered.

“Chocolate?” Emma ventured.

Duke grinned. “Of course.” He passed the knife off to Audrey, letting her cut pieces for everyone else while he headed into the kitchen to fetch the ice cream. He had bought Double Fudge Ripple, because he wasn’t a fool. However, he pulled open the door to the freezer and stopped dead at the sight of the cold little room. His heart began to pound, thundering like a jackhammer against his ribs. The cold air flooded over him, raising goosebumps even on his covered skin. He shivered, violently, clenching his teeth to keep them from chattering.

His inner monologue said, ‘Don’t be ridiculous, just go in and get the ice cream. Go in and get out. It’s just a freezer. You’ve been in one a thousand times before. You’ve even been in this exact one a thousand times before. Just go get it. Get the ice cream. What is wrong with you?!’

The strength went out of his knees and elbows. He hung on the door, unable to let go of the icy handle, unable to go inside either. His skin caught against the cold, sticking painfully. His heart continued to race wildly, his breath coming in little gasps that plumed in front of his face, and a cold sweat broke out beneath his layers of clothes. All at once, it was like Audrey had never come for them.

“—uke?”

A warm hand fell on his shoulder like a brand.

Startled, Duke yelped and slammed the door shut. With a flush of shame, he realized he must have taken a long time to get the ice cream—long enough that Nathan and Audrey had both come to look for him. God, he just couldn’t get anything right, could he? One little thing, one little promise, and he failed to deliver.

Duke cleared his throat, voice coming in a rasp, “Sorry—”

“Don’t apologize,” Nathan said and withdrew his hand from Duke’s shoulder slowly.

“It’s okay, Duke,” Audrey murmured gently. She stepped into the space Nathan’s body allowed and Duke could feel the warmth of her. When she cupped his cheek, he thought his flesh might melt. She was so warm—or was he just that cold? “God, you’re freezing,” she whispered. “How long were you standing in front of the freezer?”

Duke supposed the temperature of his skin answered that. He shrugged, eyes darting down and to the side so he wouldn’t have to look at her or Nathan.

“What was it?” Nathan asked softly. “Was it… seeing Emma?”

“No, no,” Duke said hastily. His concern for Emma snapped him out of his anxiety. “No, not her, of course not. It was…” he hesitated, knowing how stupid it was but unable to help himself regardless. “It was… the cold.”

“The cold?” Nathan repeated. His voice was concerned and curious, not the least bit chastising or disgusted. It gave Duke the strength to go on.

Duke leaned into Audrey’s firebrand touch. “Yeah, I know you couldn’t feel it, but it was freezing in there.”

Nathan nodded thoughtfully. “I could hear the air conditioner going all the time, but I couldn’t tell.” Nathan’s expression twisted with guilt and Duke realized exactly what he was thinking—that Duke and Emma had suffered, that he hadn’t felt any of it, that his Trouble had made his torment only half of theirs, that his inability to feel it somehow made his torture less real.

“Hey,” Duke interrupted.

Nathan’s eyes snapped to his face, blue and open and aching, but the mask slammed into place almost immediately. He had his cop face on, the expression that allowed him to look into the darkest horrors and hold back his heart until he was alone. He drew in a breath and then listened, poised to do what he could to help Duke. The bruises, raw scratches, and half-healed scars from the blindfold stood out on his sallow cheeks.

Duke didn’t know what to say. He wanted to tell Nathan that what he went through mattered, even though he couldn’t feel it. He wanted to tell them both what it was like, sitting on that floor, naked and freezing, watching Emma and Nathan being pulled away for unimaginable tortures. In fact, the tortures Duke saw in his mind were probably worse than what they had even went through, but he couldn’t say that to them. What could he say?

“Come on,” Audrey ventured finally. “Emma’s waiting for her ice cream.”

Duke nodded and pulled open the freezer door again. His cold hand shook violently and his fingers almost didn’t have the strength, but Nathan and Audrey were watching him so he forced himself to open it. The cold air rushed out again, tendrils of vapor hanging like a curtain. Duke’s breath caught.

Wordlessly, Audrey shifted past him and picked up the container.

Duke let the door slam shut. The sound tore a little gasp from him and he shuddered all over.

“Duke,” Audrey began.

“Audrey,” Nathan said with a smile. “Will you bring that out to Emma? Duke and I are right behind you.”

Audrey searched his face and must have seen something reassuring. Taking bowls, spoons, and the scoop, she carried the ice cream back into the dining room.

Duke sucked in air, raking his frigid hands through his hair and over his face. “We should get back—”

Nathan caught his hand, spinning Duke around easily. Duke hadn’t realized how lightheaded he was, how weak his arms felt, how cold he still was. Nathan didn’t release Duke’s hand, bringing his numb fingers up to press against the impossible heat of Nathan’s exposed throat. Duke gasped, starting to pull away, because the icy-cold of his skin could not be pleasant, but then he remembered that Nathan couldn’t feel it. His breath shuddered out of him.

Nathan smoothed the fingers of Duke’s hand over his pulse and then took Duke’s free hand in his own. He couldn’t feel the chill of Duke’s skin, but he saw the expression on Duke’s face and knew his own skin must feel like coals. He pressed Duke’s second hand alongside the first, letting Duke soak up the heat from his neck, and cupped his palms over them securely. Duke inhaled jaggedly, rich dark eyes darting up to search Nathan’s face.

Nathan didn’t look like he knew what he was doing. He was gazing at Duke with a mixture of confusion and concern, but he kept Duke’s cold hands cradled against his pulse. Slowly, the warmth and life leeched back into Duke. He caught himself drawing a thumb along Nathan’s jugular, feeling the beat of his heart, knowing that Nathan couldn’t feel it. He could take comfort in Nathan without Nathan even realizing. Somehow, that made it easier.

“Are you okay?” Nathan asked finally.

Duke choked on a laugh. “Are you?”

Nathan made a soft sound, noncommittal.

“Will we ever be okay again?” Duke asked softly.

“I have to believe we will be,” Nathan murmured. “Don’t you?”

Duke tugged free of Nathan’s grip. “I guess.”

Nathan let him go, but he didn’t look like he wanted to.

Duke dragged his hand through his hair again. He wanted to say something to Nathan, anything to explain what he was feeling. How was it possible that he still didn’t feel like he had gotten out of that cell? Everything in his life felt like the thing that would finally reassure him that they were free, that they were safe, that Audrey had come. Just this morning, lying in bed with Audrey and Nathan, he had thought that everything was fine. How was it that the walk-in freezer, that one gallon of chocolate ice cream, could make him feel like this?

“Duke,” Nathan began.

Duke stopped, turning to face him. The sight of Nathan’s body—the scars on his face, the stitches visible over the neck of his shirt, the bruises standing out on his wrists, the marks from hitting the plexiglass that coated his palms—caught inside Duke’s chest like a trapped bird beating itself against a window. Something inside him felt about to crack.

Nathan had never been good at talking. He wasn’t that kind of person. He acted—often rashly, but always with his whole heart.

In an instant, he closed the space between them. He caught Duke’s face in his palms, tipping Duke’s head so that Duke was forced to meet those baby-blues. Nathan’s breath came fast, hard, puffing against Duke’s lips. For a moment, Nathan hung there, clutching Duke upright. He couldn’t feel the chill on Duke’s skin, the cold sweat beading in his hairline, the ragged rataplan of his heartbeat.

Nathan closed the space between them, lowering his mouth to Duke’s a little too hard. Duke gasped, part-surprise and part-pain at the force. Nathan cradled his face, pulling him closer, eyes open in a way that would have been creepy if not for the world reminding Duke that Nathan couldn’t feel any of this. He needed to see Duke, otherwise he would never know. He would never know how happy Duke was that he was alive, how much Duke had wanted this, how much Duke loved him.

Duke clutched Nathan hard, jostling him so that Nathan could feel his body moving. He closed his eyes, leaning hard into Nathan’s kiss, pressing his thumb in a way that encouraged Nathan to open his mouth. He delved inside, knowing that Nathan would be able to taste the chocolate frosting on his tongue. Nathan groaned, the sound breathless and hungry. His tongue was clumsy, chasing the flavor more than the feel. Duke dug his fingers through Nathan’s hair, shifting his head to allow a better angle, welcoming Nathan in deeper.

Panting, Nathan broke away. His forehead rested against Duke’s and he breathed out shakily.

“I’m not okay,” Duke said suddenly.

Nathan drew back with a jerk, guilt riding up in his face. “Oh—”

“No,” Duke said quickly. He latched on to Nathan, pulling him close. “Not with that, no, not that. Gods, I’ve wanted that for as long as I can remember.”

Nathan smiled shyly, reaching to brush some of Duke’s mussed hair out of his face.

“I need to talk to Claire,” Duke admitted. “There’s a lot of this that I need to talk about.”

“I’m here for you,” Nathan said. “Audrey too.”

Duke nodded, wondering what she would think if she knew what they had done. Guilt and nausea competed inside him.

“Me too,” Audrey agreed.

Her voice startled Duke within an inch of his life. For his part, Nathan didn’t even flinch. He turned to face her with a peaceful smile that twisted Duke’s insides. Had Nathan kissed him just to shut him up, just to pull him out of his funk? It hadn’t felt like that. It felt—

Then, Audrey was kissing him. She fit herself up between them, breasts pressing soft to Duke’s chest. Duke felt the ridge of Nathan’s knuckles as he held her close, then felt Nathan’s hands snake around his back to pull them even closer. Audrey’s mouth opened and Duke followed helplessly, venturing to taste her. Her lips were cool and sweet from the ice cream and Duke wondered how long he had been in here with Nathan. He wondered how long she had been watching.

“Duke,” Audrey said when the kiss broke and he continued to stare at her dazedly. “Do you think you’re dreaming?”

He nodded. “I think I’m dead.”

“Not dead,” Nathan assured him. He dipped his head to kiss Audrey.

She made a breathless sound when he pulled away. “I don’t want to be without either of you,” she said, “ever again.”

Nathan nodded.

“Do you want that, Duke?” Audrey said softly. “Want us?”

Duke choked on his answer. “Yes,” he managed. “Gods, yes.”

Audrey rose onto her tiptoes to kiss him again.

Nathan followed close behind.

When they slipped apart, arms still tangled around Duke, it was the first time he truly felt safe. He held them both close, fingers slipping beneath Audrey’s untucked shirt to feel her skin, eyes locked with Nathan’s when he leaned in to steal another kiss. At least, that had been his intention, but Nathan came willingly. Nathan stayed close, sharing Duke’s air, breathing in his scent. Audrey rested her weight against them, her hand stroking twin paths down their backs.

“Come back out,” Audrey said after a long moment. “Emma is waiting for you.”

Duke nodded and followed them back into the Gull.

“So,” Dwight said over his mug of cooled coffee. “Emma says you were telling her a story.”

“I was and then Nathan took up the mantle,” Duke said as he sank into his place beside Emma.

She smiled at him, beaming over the mountain of chocolate on her plate.

“Nathan too?” Dwight asked with an arched brow.

“It’s a great story,” Audrey said, taking her seat beside Dwight. “It has everything. Romance, action, comedy, tears.”

Emma swallowed. “You have to finish it, Duke!”

Glancing at Dwight’s smirk and Audrey’s little smile, he realized, “You planned this.”

“You’re the one who invited us,” Dwight said and forked up some cake.

“Just tell them,” Nathan said gently. “It is a great story.”

…

They spend the rest of the afternoon with Emma. Dwight peeled himself away after Duke finished the heart-warming conclusion to his Vampire Slayer story, leaving Emma in their care while he headed to the station to finish some paperwork. Audrey insisted on taking Emma to the park where Nathan showed off his inner child and swung with her until they were both dizzy. Duke watched, sunning himself in bliss, while Audrey sat beside him, stiff with focus. Her eyes darted from place to place, scanning the foliage for any threat.

Duke squeezed her hand, interlacing their fingers, and she clung to him. It was almost dinnertime when Dwight returned to collect Emma. She was emotionally exhausted and gratefully climbed into Dwight's cruiser after pecking Duke and Nathan both goodbye on the cheek.

“Her aunt?” Audrey asked.

“I cleared up the last of the paperwork. Bail is posted unreasonably high to keep that bastard on ice until the trial,” Dwight told her. “I called her aunt and she's going to come tomorrow afternoon to pick Emma up.”

Audrey nodded contently.

“Thank goodness,” Nathan agreed.

“Not to change the subject, but... while we're on the subject of bastards being put on ice, whatever happened to the people at the Initiative?” Duke asked.

Dwight adjusted his stance, his shoulder taking a defensive tilt.

Audrey nibbled her lower lip. “There's a lot of red tape to cut through before Collins sees any charges, but... the FBI does have an inside source that's helping us put the whole operation out of commission.”

“An inside source?” Nathan repeated.

Duke's heart jumped. “Was it a nurse?”

Audrey nodded, her pale eyes sharp. “You know?”

Duke let out a little breath of relief. “It's Riley, isn't it?”

Audrey jolted and then nodded. “Did she help you while you were in there?”

“She did her best,” Duke murmured.

Nathan stepped against Audrey's back, letting her lean into him.

“Will you come see Emma off tomorrow?” Dwight asked, relieved that Audrey had been able to give Duke the answers he needed while admitting it was going to take more time.

“Count on it,” Nathan told Dwight.

With that, Dwight climbed into his cruiser and headed off. Emma waved out the window until they were out of sight. Nathan slid behind the wheel of his Bronco, wrapping his hands around the wheel with a delighted sigh. It felt good to be back in his truck. Audrey hoisted herself into the back and Duke took the passenger seat, tilting his head against the back. Audrey combed her fingers through his long loose hair, scratching his scalp idly, and Duke fought his urge to purr. Nathan drove back to the Rouge, idling at the end of the dock with the headlights cutting into the dark.

“Are we going in?” Nathan asked, his voice taking a hint of worry.

Duke reached back, sliding his fingers into Audrey's hair and pulling her in for an upside-down kiss. She smiled against him, giggling when he licked her lower lip. She pulled away, smoothing her hair. Duke sat up with a groan, popping his neck. Nathan put his truck in park, curiously looking between them.

“Of course,” Duke told Nathan with a grin. “That is, if you want.”

“I want,” Audrey supplied.

Nathan shut off the truck in response and climbed down.

Duke led them onto the Rouge, unlocking the door and flipping on a few lamps. Audrey came in behind him and Nathan slid the two bolts home. Duke turned to face them, about to ask how they wanted to do this—if they wanted anything at all. However, before any of his fears could take root, Audrey was on him. She cupped his face in her hands and devoured him. She kissed like she was starving, like she was desperate, like she had been looking for him for five weeks without knowing if he was alive or dead.

Duke gasped into her mouth, stumbling backwards. Nathan came up at his back, pressing into him, holding him steady. Nathan's fingers were warm and rough, sliding underneath his many layers. Audrey pulled away just enough for Nathan to pull Duke's shirts off. Then, she leaned over Duke's shoulder and kissed Nathan just as hungrily. Crushing Duke between them, his body burned with their passion. He could hear them kissing, even though he couldn't see it. He ran his hands down Audrey's body, pulling her shirt from her pants and touching her bare back.

When she broke from Nathan's kiss, panting, Duke wasted no time in stripping the shirt from her, flinging it somewhere. Audrey ran her hands down his bared chest, rasping over his nipples and down his abs. Duke shuddered, goosebumps breaking out at her touch. Nathan caught her wrists and she stripped off his shirt too. She ran her palms over him and Nathan made a desperate sound. He trembled at her touch, his entire body coming alight. Duke could see the effect her touch—his ability to feel her—had on him.

“My room,” Duke said breathlessly.

Audrey unsnapped her bra and flung it. She led them down the hallway to Duke's cabin, hips swaying. She paused at the threshold, looking back at them, her golden hair tumbling down over her shoulders.

Nathan followed first and Duke brought up the rear, closing the door behind them.

Audrey unsnapped her jeans and shimmied out of them. Her panties were comfortable, cotton trimmed with lace, just the right amount of practical and sexy.

Duke turned to Nathan, unzipped his jeans, and pulled them down. Nathan wore boxer-briefs that hugged his impressive erection, the fabric dark against his white skin. Nathan kicked off his jeans and let Duke tug down his underwear, freeing his cock. Duke dropped to his knees, looking up at Nathan, wrapping his fingers around Nathan's shaft. Nathan groaned, the visual slicing through him of Duke on his knees, pink tongue snaking out to lap at the swollen head of him.

Audrey made a soft sound, sitting delicately on Duke's bed to watch. Her expression was captivated.

Duke met her eyes, then Nathan's as he swallowed Nathan down.

Nathan gasped, then groaned, reaching down to tangle his fingers in Duke's dark hair. He watched Duke bob on him, cheeks hollowing with the suction. Audrey slithered off the bed, hitting her knees beside Duke. She slid her fingers into his hair also, brushing against Nathan's fingers. Duke let her set the pace, his eyes closed with focus. She bobbed him on Nathan's shaft, listening to the obscene sounds his mouth made as he lapped and sucked. Duke's hips rocked, too tight in his jeans.

Audrey gently pulled him off Nathan's cock, diving in to kiss his wet mouth, licking into him. Duke moaned into her, shuddering. Nathan pulled them both back to their feet, guiding them towards the bed. He pushed Duke down and made quick work of his jeans, dropping between Duke's spread thighs. He pressed kissed all over the insides of Duke's thighs, breathing in the scent of his skin. While he was teasing, Audrey beat him to the punch, swooping down to engulf Duke's cock in her mouth.

He yelped, fisting his hands in the sheets while Audrey bobbed. Her golden hair tickled his belly and thighs, her hot tongue laved the underside of his cock, and her teeth scraped just enough to raise goosebumps on his flesh. Nathan nipped, accidentally or on purpose, Duke wasn't sure. He jolted, heart jumping to a wild beat in his chest. He squirmed away from Audrey's mouth and Nathan's hands, gasping for breath. Audrey sucked off him with a pop, her eyes luminous.

Duke scooted up until his back reached the headboard. Audrey crept forward, straddling his lap. Nathan slid in behind her, his bare chest warm against her back as he circled his arms around her. Duke leaned up and Nathan lowered his face enough to kiss. Audrey purred, pressing a little kiss of her own to the corner of their mouths. They turned, awkwardly trying to include her in the kiss. Giggling, she sat back and admired them, stroking their hair and cheeks.

“I love you both so much,” Audrey whispered. “Please, I need you. Both of you.”

“Are you sure?” Duke asked.

Audrey reached across him, her bare breasts swinging. She rummaged through Duke's nightstand, pulling out a box of condoms and a bottle of lube. She tore open the foil with her teeth and rolled the condom over Duke's erection. Then, she handed him the bottle of lube and turned to settle her back to his chest so that she was facing Nathan. She kissed him sweetly, moaning as Duke slicked his fingers and began to work open her ass. His touch was gentle, deep, patient.

Nathan kissed her, his tongue snaking out, licking the flavor of Duke from her lips. Audrey anchored herself with her hands on Nathan's shoulders. She gasped, squirming and whimpering as Duke opened her up further. She could feel three of his fingers now, spreading her tight muscles, then adding more lube. She dug her nails into Nathan's skin, breathlessly pleading, wriggling her hips into Duke's hands. She was empty and hungry. She had missed them. She loved them so much.

“Please,” she begged. “Please, Duke, Nathan, please.”

Nathan steadied her shoulders, his touch gentle, while Duke eased himself into her. She hissed, shuddering as she impaled herself. Once she was seated to the root, Duke buried inside her fully, she spread her legs and welcomed Nathan. He fit against her front, pushing her deeper into Duke's chest, and slid inside her pussy. With Duke stuffed inside her, she was impossibly tight. Her muscles clenched around them, pulling them in deeper. She breathed out, shifting her hips with a moan.

Anchoring them, Duke held Audrey's hips as Nathan began to thrust. He could almost feel Duke's cock through the thin membrane inside her. Nathan set a steady pace, reaching between them to press his thumb against the base of her clit. Audrey grasped, chirping her pleasure, clinging to Nathan's shoulders. She tipped her head back, mouth open, beckoning Nathan to kiss her. He dipped his head, pecking her sweaty cheeks and forehead. She smiled at him, eyes closed in bliss. Nathan nuzzled her, nosing her aside so that he could kiss Duke.

Duke accepted the kisses gratefully, sucking Nathan's lip.

“Please, harder,” she whimpered.

Nathan increased his pace, rocking her on Duke's shaft. He stroked her clit harder, pressing it against her pubic bone. She keened, arching between them. Duke cupped her breasts, pinching her nipples and tugging gently. With a stifled scream, her orgasm tore through her. Her muscles seized, clenching down on them. The heat and tightness pulled Nathan over the edge and he rocked into her, spilling. Duke could feel them both and his own peak crashed over him. He pressed harder into Audrey, riding out the waves of pleasure.

Nathan kissed Audrey gently, then Duke.

Carefully, Nathan eased Audrey off Duke's softening cock. He cleaned himself up and disposed the soiled condom once Duke removed his. He ducked into the bathroom, wet a washcloth, and returned to gently mop the wetness and lube from between Audrey's legs. Satiated, Audrey pulled Nathan down almost on top of her, snuggling between her two boys in bliss.

“I needed that,” she whispered.

Duke pressed a little kiss to her mouth. “I love you,” he said.

Nathan tucked Audrey's head under his chin. “Love you both.”

Duke dragged the covers up over them, snuggling into the warmth of Audrey and Nathan as their sweat cooled. Audrey combed her fingers through Duke's damp hair and cuddled Nathan's face against her breasts. She was impossibly grateful that she had been able to find them and bring them home more or less whole.

XXX

Alright, everyone, we have reached the end! What is the Buffy Reference Counter at?

Questions, comments, concerns?


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